


spiderfriend

by Kittenixie



Category: Don't Starve (Video Game)
Genre: Adventure Mode, Animal Death, Attempted Murder, Blood, Character Death, Death Threats, Depression, Family Loss, Gen, Injury, Morse Code, Near Death Experiences, Nonbinary Character, Self Harm, Spiders, Suicidal Thoughts, Survival, he's just bitter and prone to not trusting monsters, literally everyone almost gets bodied, mild manipulation, not permanently but everyone thinks it is, so everyone will act accordingly to that, spider hybrid kid, spooky kids having fun, technically but it's just for making telltale hearts, they get revived tho, webber is a good kid i love them, webber is a very innocent kid and just wants to make friends, willow moms everyone, wilson isn't really mean
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-06-25
Updated: 2018-10-14
Packaged: 2019-05-28 08:38:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 14
Words: 27,023
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15045113
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kittenixie/pseuds/Kittenixie
Summary: Life in the Constant is anything but normal, but Webber is going to make the most of it. That won't be too hard, they have their new found family with them.But some things are best left buried.





	1. you don't look so good

**Author's Note:**

> the author has a main tumblr account where questions abt this fic are allowed and encouraged! check it out at kittenixie.tumblr.com
> 
> they also have a side blog where you can interact directly with this canon's webber, but please read the rules first! the side blog is at creepiestcrawlie.tumblr.com

Webber doesn't know why they're here.  
  
At one point they were home. They know that much. But now they're not. They're in the woods. It's been a few hours since they've seen an actual person. The last one they saw was the tall guy who was there when they woke up. But it's been a while now, a while of aimless wandering. He told them to find something to eat before night comes. They couldn't even say anything to him before he vanished. They don't know where this is, or who _he_ was, or why they're here. It's frustrating.  
  
But they're not _entirely_ on their own. They found that out very quickly after they woke up. There's two of them. They don't know why or how, but they're a spider. Or, well, _merged_ with a spider? _Maybe it was like Spiderman, get bit and now they have superpowers, haha!_ But they can't really see many major upsides to this, other than being fluffy and spooky looking. They have big teeth, they guess? It's a weird time.  
  
Either way, they've really been doing their best. They found some berries and some carrots and some kinda sharp metal and sticks and grass and stuff. There's also bunnies! But they're not normal bunnies, they have antlers and weird spooky eyes! They’re very scared of Webber, though. They also saw some big fluffy cow things, but they didn't get too close in case they didn't like how Webber looked. But they even chopped down a tree! After all, with some wood and grass, they could surely make a fire!  
  
It's getting darker now. Night is falling, they think. They hope there's no creepy crawlies out here. _Well, other than them! They're the creepiest crawlie there is! Haha._  
  
It's pitch black, other than some fireflies they see scattered around. They're working on getting a fire going, as best as they can in the dark, when they hear a noise. Like whispering. They pause, raising their head and looking around, but they don't see anything nearby.  
  
"Hello?" They call, suddenly not feeling so safe out here. Maybe they're not the creepiest crawlie. They stand, ready to bolt at a moment's notice, and then they feel a searing hot pain across their front, like someone slashed at them. They gasp and fall back, hissing in pain. They didn't used to hiss. Is that normal? _Are they normal?_ They scrabble backwards away from an unseen enemy, something lurking in the dark. It wants to hurt them. _It wants to hurt us._  
  
"Monsters in the dark!" They hiss, squinting as their eyes hit a light. Fireflies. They don't hear the monster anymore. So they just lay under the fireflies, resting their head against the grassy ground. They hurt. _We hurt_ . Everything just _hurts_ .  
  
They don't know when they fell asleep, but evidently they do.

* * *

 

By some miracle, they're still alive when they wake up. Their chest hurts, but only an ache. It's _nothing_ compared to when it first happened. Just don't touch it, it'll sting. They'll find a way to fix themselves up.

  
Their routine is much the same as the day previous. They get food, they get wood, this time they'll have fire before night. Except today, they decide they want _out_ . So they start walking. They pick a direction and go. And they keep walking, until they get to an edge.  
  
There's. An _edge_ .  
  
The land stops, and replacing it is sea. Rather violent sea. They don't think a boat could stay up on this. They decide to keep walking along the edge, careful not to get too close. After all, they don't want to fall in or get splashed and soggy. They keep walking, and keep walking, and keep walking. It's a long time until they stop. They see a house. And outside it, walking around, is a pig man. _A man pig. Piggy._ They watch it for a few moments, walking around doing nothing. And then it sees them.  
  
"YOU GO SMASH!" The pig yells, chasing after them. They hiss on instinct, backing up, then they turn around and start running. They don't know how long it is until they stop, out of breath. They don't know where they are. They got turned around while they were getting away. They're in a forest now.  
  
They breathe in, shaky. It's dusk. They start making a campfire. And once the fire is up, they rest. The monster doesn't like the light. It won't hurt them if there's light. They sigh, looking at their talons. It's weird being like this. They're weird. They look like a monster. We look like a monster.  
  
"We want to go home," they mumble, tearing up. This was fun and exciting at first, but now it's just scary. They want to go back to your family. Would they like them like this? They're scary now. The pigs don't like them.  
  
They hear a hiss and several scuttling feet. They pause, looking around, and they see it. It's a spider. It's a little smaller than Webber's head, and it's looking at them, but it doesn't come to hurt then. They just look at each other for a while.  
  
"Hello," they say hesitantly. The spider just looks at them. They don't know if it understands them or not, but after a few moments, it comes a bit closer. They offer it a clawed hand, and it considers them for a moment before pressing to it like a cat. "You're... You're _like us_ ," they say softly, eyes wide. "I bet the pigs don't like you, either. They're just _meanies_ . You're nice." They still aren't sure if it understands what they're saying to it, but it's nice to have someone to talk to other than themselves either way.  
  
They spend the night with the spider nearby.

* * *

 

Their pickaxe hits the rock with as much strength as they can muster. Which, albeit, isn't much, but it's the best as they can do. They have a good feeling about this one, it's all shiny. The rock breaks open, and they pick up its contents. "Shiny," they mumble as they pick up a chunk of gold. They don't know why, but they think they might need that. They don't know a lot of things. They still don't know why they're even _here_ . Oh well. They keep mining for a while, collecting all of the rocks and gold and metal stuff they can. After all, they haven't found a way off this place, wherever they are, so they should collect things. They might be useful!  
  
They collected some wood, too. It's hard to chop trees, they're still little, but they do their best. After all, twigs won't make a good fire. Not unless you have a lot of them, which they don't. They stay away from pigs and they keep exploring the island. They found lots of things, more spiders, weird birdy things, spiky frogs, more cow creatures. They make a fire for the night, they eat, they rinse and repeat. They don't know what else they _can_ do. It's hard to think very well when they're struggling just to get by.  
  
They've spent the time they've been mindlessly collecting food to think about their situation. They've quickly realized there's some kind of _gap_ in their memory. They were at their house, and then there's sort of... Bright lights. And they think they remember some guy with weird hair? And then they woke up here. They don't know what happened to get them here, but they feel like they might've been saved.  
  
It's a few days until they find something weird. It's a structure of some kind. When they come closer, metal parts on it open up and reveal... what looks like a _portal_ ? It's all swirly and weird. They back up a step, but it feels like something is... sucking them in? They panic. They don't know what this thing will _do_ to them! What if it mixes them with something else?! They try to get out of the pull, but it grows stronger. They're dragged in before they can really protest.  
  
...They feel sick going through. It's like motion sickness times a thousand. It's really  bright. They get tossed out the other end of the portal, landing with a _thump_ on the grass. There's a bright flash of light as they land. They let out a little hiss of pain, clutching their skull. Their head hurts. Their head really... _hurts_ ...  
  
Everything goes black.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> -.-- --- ..- / .- .-. . / .... . .-. . / ..-. --- .-. / .- / .-. . .- ... --- -.


	2. always together and never alone

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Webber finds friendship in an unlikely place. But the problem is, it's hard to trust someone who looks like the things that try to kill you constantly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> welcome to the longer and better chapter

When they woke up, things were still fuzzy. Were those… voices? They cracked open their eyes, wincing slightly at the brightness and biting back an instinctive hiss before closing them again. How long were they out? Where were they? Who was _talking_? They didn't move, just tried to listen in. They didn't want anyone to realize they were awake until they knew what was going on.

“...just saying, it might try to eat us.” They didn't recognize the voice, but he sounded… pretty irritated.

“Oh, please, it's just _one_ weird spider. If it tries to attack us, there's _three_ of us against it. You'll live.” That one sounded less angry, more just vaguely annoyed. “Don't be a baby, you're a grown man, you can deal with it.”

“When have you _ever_ seen a passive spider in the Constant?” The man argued with an annoyed sigh. “It's going to attack us when it wakes up. Don't say I didn't warn you.” They could hear some sort of… distorted whispering. It didn't sound quite human. The spidery limbs on their head twitched, and they jolted as they felt something beside them. Their eyes opened, squinting in the light, and they could see a blurry shape. It looked like… a kid? There was a girl with blonde hair kneeling next to them, head tilted slightly.

“Well, what if it's _not_ hostile? There's no point in killing it while it's out cold if it's friendly. Besides, does it _look_ like a normal spider, even by the Constant’s standards?” The lady spoke again, foot tapping the ground. Were these people talking about _killing them_? They froze up, eyes wide. They didn't wanna die, they still had to get back to their family! Besides, death sounded really scary! The girl next to them had looked away, instead looking at the two adults. Webber looked that way, too.

The one who seemed most irritated looked like he was in his late twenties, early thirties, and he had really weird hair. The other was a lady who seemed around the same age, with a less odd hairstyle. Both had what looked like makeshift spears, which made their heart skip a beat. They also spotted what looked like a ghost with a red flower in its “hair” hovering near the little girl next to them. Webber slowly pulled themselves into a sitting position, listening to the two bicker.

“Obviously it's not, but it's still a spider, Willow!” The man argued, clearly exasperated. “Spiders attack whenever they get the chance, it's what they do!” He rubbed his temples.

“Can you just listen for once? We'll wait until it wakes up, if it attacks us we can just kill it, easy. Besides, Wendy said it came through the portal, you ever seen a spider do that?” The woman-- Willow-- crossed her arms.

“Why give it the chance to hurt one of us? It's not like we have infinite salves, you know,” the man retorted, crossing his arms right back. These two really fought like… like… Webber wouldn't say they were like an old married couple, it was more like they were siblings who just liked to argue.

“Well,” the kid next to them spoke up, startling them, “it hasn't bit me yet.” That definitely got the adults’ attention. The two both whipped their heads around to look at the two, which made Webber flinch slightly before freezing up.

“Wendy, get away from it!” The man ordered, though the kid just gave him a blank, mildly unamused stare in response. Webber just stared at the man's _spear. He's going to hurt us. He's going to stab us._

The girl didn't move, turning her gaze back to Webber. “It's been awake and it hasn't tried to attack anyone. I think it's safe.” It cheered them up slightly that this stranger was standing up for them, their trembling lessened. “Can you understand me?” The kid, Wendy, asked. Webber managed a nod. The girl tilted her head slightly, raising an eyebrow. “Can you talk?” Webber opened their mouth, then jolted as they saw the man tighten his grip on his spear.

“You're scaring it, Wilson,” Willow pointed out, hands on her hips. “Stop holding that spear like you're ready to jump on it. It's not hostile, clearly, and it understands us.” Wilson huffed, but put his spear away without arguing. Webber relaxed slightly, letting out a quiet sigh of relief. Wendy was still looking at them, waiting an answer.

“...Y-yes,” they replied, still keeping their eye on Wilson. “W-we can talk.” Their voice was hoarse and scratchy and had a sort of “not right” feeling to it, but they'd since gotten used to it.

“See, _Higgsbury_? It's just a kid. And you almost speared it.” Willow put her hands on her hips, looking like a disappointed mother. They flinched as they felt a touch on their arm, turning their gaze to their side.

Wendy had a vaguely worried, confused look on her face, brows furrowed. “Are you alright?” She asked. Webber didn't understand why she seemed so baffled, until they realized that their face was wet. Oh, they were crying. They sniffled, rubbing their eyes. Their vision was blurry with tears, but they were sure all three of these strangers were staring at them. They let out a quiet hiccup, curling in on themselves slightly. They almost _died_. These strangers almost killed them.

“Oh, _now_ look what you've done,” Willow complained, and Webber heard her step closer. Her hands scooped them up by the armpits like a cat, and they let out another hiccup. “Come on now, it's alright, you're safe.”

“I didn't _do_ anything.” Wilson complained. “And be careful with that thing. It might bite you.” Willow seemed to ignore him completely, just letting the hybrid cry into her shirt.

“...We should get back to base,” Willow said, holding Webber close. “It'll get dark soon. Don't want the night monster to catch us out here.” Wilson grumbled, but didn't complain, and the four started to move back to their camp. Webber gradually settled down, though Willow never put them down until they wiggled out of her grasp. They were okay, they could walk. They fell back a bit, lagging behind with Wendy.

“I guess you're feeling better?” Wendy looked over at them, head tilted. The presence of her ghost friend was kind of eerie. Still, Webber nodded, smiling to prove it. “That's good, then. My name is Wendy, but I think you caught that already.”

“Oh, yes, we heard. But, um, who's…” They didn't want to just _ask_ who the ghost was, that might be rude, so they just looked at the spirit. She looked back at them.

“That's my sister, Abigail,” Wendy replied, seeming nonplussed. Well, that was grim! But if Wendy wasn't upset over it, they wouldn't push the topic.

“Hi, Abigail!” Webber smiled. It was easier to be cheerful now that they were around other people. “Oh, sorry, we're Webber. It's nice to meet you, Wendy!” They couldn't read her expression, it was too blank. Still, they hoped she was alright. They turned their attention back to the adults, who seemed to be discussing something. Not angrily now, just worried. “...Do you think this is… okay?” They asked quietly, not wanting the pair to hear them.

“Is what okay?” Wendy replied, tilting her head to one side.

“Just… us staying with you guys, I guess.” They said softly, frowning.

“Well,” the girl began, looking forward. “it'll be harder to feed four, not to mention the tools and the materials we'll need to take care of you.” Webber’s frown deepened, head lowering a little. “But if you can pull your weight, or even just most of it, I'm sure it'll be fine. No need to act like it'll kill us.” That did cheer them up a bit.

“We can! Pull our own weight, I mean.” They smiled brightly, fangs poking out of their mouth. Wendy seemed like the type who wouldn't lie to you that things were perfect if they weren't. She seemed like she'd give you the truth outright even if it hurt. In a way, Webber appreciated that. Honesty was nice, even if it was a little brutal. They didn't really mind it that much. The rest of the walk to their base was pretty quiet.

 

* * *

 

 

The base wasn't really a five star hotel, but it was definitely much better than Webber had gotten since they arrived here.

There was a fire pit, what looked like a crockpot, and… a weird… machine. Webber couldn't make heads or tails of it, and when they asked Wendy, she just said “Wilson made it”. They also heard Willow call it a “science machine”. They got the feeling that Wilson was the only one who used it to any great extent. Willow was seated by the fire pit, absently flicking a lighter’s cap. Open, closed, open, closed. Webber watched with a bit of curiosity.

“Are you alright, Ms. Willow?" They asked, making the woman jolt slightly. She turned her gaze to them, putting away her lighter.

“Yes, I'm fine. Webber, was it?” She questioned, a look of vague disbelief on her face.

“Yes, that's my name!” Webber chirped, smiling brightly.

“I'm not trying to be rude, of course, just curious, but… Is that your real name?” Webber paused, then nodded. It was what they preferred to be called.

“Yes it is, I chose it myself!” They smiled, ever cheerful. “Do you like it, Ms. Willow?”

The woman smiled, looking like she understood. “It's a good name,” she replied, putting a few logs in the fire pit in preparation for nightfall.

 

* * *

 

 

As soon as it got dark, Willow lit the logs she'd placed in the pit. The fire roared to life, big enough that it'd be worrying if it weren't contained. Webber checked themselves, but none of what they'd collected had survived going through the portal. Bummer. They might have to go hungry for the night, but they didn't really mind--

A few meatballs were handed to them, shoved into their hands before they could even think about starving for the night. “Eat up,” Wilson said simply, going back to the crockpot.

“Thank you, Mr. Wilson!” Webber called, smiling wide. They quickly ate the meatballs, feeling much better now that they'd gotten some food. Wendy was sitting next to them, Abigail hovering nearby. It was nice having someone their age around. If they had to go through Wilson and Willow’s bickering alone, they'd probably lose it.

“Someone needs to stay awake and keep an eye on the fire,” Wilson commented, handing Willow her serving of meatballs.

Webber perked up. “Oh, oh, we can do it!” They chirped, fangs poking out of their mouth. Wilson looked at them, grimacing slightly, which made their smile falter.

“I'd rather not have you do it alone, Webber, but thank y--”

“I'll stay up with them,” Wendy interrupted, eyeing the scientist. Willow snorted in amusement, and Wilson sighed.

“Alright, you two are on fire duty. Just make sure it doesn't go out,” he relented, laying down.

“Goodnight, kids,” Willow said, resting.

 

* * *

 

 

As soon as they knew for sure that the adults were asleep, Webber spoke up. “He doesn't trust us, does he?” They sighed, resting their chin in their hands.

“Well, no. But Wilson doesn't trust anyone immediately,” Wendy replied, prodding the fire with a twig. “He'll warm up to you. Don't get too discouraged.” Webber nodded softly. Just the right amount of encouragement and truth to cheer them up.

“That's good,” Webber replied with a small smile. They wanted everyone to trust them, they wanted to be friends.

“...It might prove it if you watched the fire on your own,” Wendy offered. “If you were the only one awake and we all woke up fine, it'd say something. And I trust you to be okay on your own.”

“But wouldn't that mean you'd be trusted less?”

“Oh well. Say I fell asleep on accident.”

“...Well… Alright, if you think it'd help,” Webber replied, smiling. Besides, they wanted Wendy to get some sleep. She looked like she needed it, judging by the bags under her eyes. “Get some rest, we'll watch the fire. You have our word!” They chirped, raising a hand to their head in a fake salute. Wendy snorted.

“Alright, just make sure you stay awake.” Webber nodded, watching as their friend laid down to sleep. They'd prove that they could be trusted!

 

* * *

 

 

“Forty-one bottles of pop on the wall, forty-one bottles of pop! Take one down, pass it around, forty bottles of pop on the wall!”

It was still pitch dark, but they were passing time by singing the little campfire song. They were quiet, though, not wanting to disturb their sleeping friends. They only had to stay up for a few more hours.

“Thirty-two bottles of pop on the wall, thirty-two… bottles of…” They trailed off, hearing an odd sound. Like the note of a music box, discordant as it was. And it was getting closer. They stood, noticing a shadowy hand coming closer and closer to the fire. The spider hybrid hissed, fur standing on end. “Hey! Get away!” They hissed, rounding the fire and chasing the hand away. Once it was out of the light, it vanished with a discordant note. Webber quickly scrambled back into the camp, letting out a wheeze of relief. It was gone, they could relax.

They sat back down by the fire, blinking. “......Thirty-two bottles of pop on the wall, thirty-two bottles of pop! Take one down, pass it around, thirty-one bottles of pop on the wall!”

 

* * *

 

 

When daylight hit, the fire was still going, just like Webber said. Wilson was a bit irate, though mostly at Wendy for falling asleep. As the man scolded their friend, they felt Willow ruffle the fur on their head and giggled.

“You did good, Webber. I'm sure Wilson will thank you. Once he gets done mom-ing Wendy.” The last bit was mumbled, but it made Webber grin and laugh nonetheless.

It was nice to be around people again.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> . -. .--- --- -.-- / -.-- --- ..- .-. / ... - .- -.--


	3. you could never be a monster

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Webber is starting to accustom themselves to life with the group, and with their new best friend. It's not perfect, but they'll make it work the best they can, and they'll pull their own weight.

It had been about a week since Webber joined the ragtag group of survivors.

 

Their talents were apparent, they were good at “talking down” spiders, eating some of the stuff the others couldn't eat safely, they were good at cheering everyone up. And the oddest thing of all was that they were the best at weaving.

 

“No, I've never weaved a trap before, Mr. Higgsbury.  _ He _ has, though.” Webber smiled, though the explanation only seemed to confuse Wilson further. They weren't really able to explain how they and the spider were fused, or that they were two minds in one body at all. The spider was quieter, but he knew how to do some things better than they did.  _ You're weaving that all wrong, let me.  _ Webber didn't really mind, they had their other side in check for the most part. “Here, all done.” They passed the finished bird trap to Wilson, who put it in his backpack.

 

“Thank you, Webber,” he said, nodding. It was an unspoken agreement to not talk about the spider too often. Webber didn't know the circumstances or the workings of his hybridization and thinking about it gave him a headache. Wendy had tried to talk to him before, knowing better than the other two about their situation, but he wasn't very talkative. Besides, something else speaking through their mouth was highly unpleasant.

 

They and Wendy were pretty close, they liked to think. Despite the fact that Wendy was an expert at keeping a poker face, Webber was getting better at reading her. There were always  _ tells _ . It just took a while to recognize them. Then again, Webber had always been skilled at understanding people, and non-people. It was one of their skills. Abigail was fun, too, they could make out what she was saying through the whispers sometimes. She was nice, Webber felt safe around her.

 

Webber was also good at thinking things up on the fly. They didn't necessarily know what they were doing, instinct just kicked in, or maybe it was something on his part. Either way, it came in handy.

 

Wendy and Webber were outside the camp, searching around for spider nests. It wasn't Webber's favorite activity, but it had to get done. Their group needed spider glands and silk, and they would get it for them. The first thing they did when they found a nest was set up three woven traps around it, that way they could easily get the materials they needed without getting hurt.

 

Wendy sighed, then stepped onto the web to get the spiders to come out. “Be careful,” Webber mumbled, clearly worried. She just nodded. The spiders came crawling out with a hiss, and Wendy backed up, quickly stepping behind the traps. Two of the spiders fell for the trick, traps falling on their heads and trapping them inside. The third didn't. It crawled right around the trap, hissing at Wendy. Wendy readied her spear.

 

“No! Wendy, don't hit it!” Webber cried, wide-eyed.

 

“Webber, I know you like spiders, but this one has to  _ go _ .” 

 

“That's not--” Before they could explain themselves, Wendy hit the spider with the spear as hard as she could. It didn't die, of course, she couldn't hit hard enough, but its cry of pain caused two warrior spiders to come out of the nest, hissing in rage. Webber turned their wide, stark white eyes to their friend, hissing out a single word. “ _ Run _ .”

 

Wendy obviously hesitated, not wanting to leave her friend in danger, but after Webber shoved her, she got running. The warriors were still angry at her, leaping after her and giving her sharp bites. Webber hissed, running after them, spear in hands.

 

* * *

 

 

This was a disaster.

 

Webber kneeled over Wendy's corpse, sniffling and sobbing. The ghost of their friend hovered nearby, looking… well, it was hard to tell when the only thing they could see were her eyes. They were absolutely coated in blood, but most of it wasn't theirs. They didn't really know what happened, but all of the spiders were dead now, nest smashed and ripped apart into pieces of silk on the ground. The spider hybrid sniffled, then their eyes narrowed, some sort of instinct taking over.

 

They picked a spider gland off of the ground, taking some grass out of their backpack and tying strands tightly around the gland. Now it was vaguely heart-shaped. They took a deep breath, looking at their wrist.  _ Horizontal for hospital, vertical for morgue _ , as Wendy told them. They raised their wrist to their mouth, cutting themselves with their fang with a wince. Wendy's spirit made a noise of alarm, eyes wide open. They put their bleeding wrist over the odd creation, squeezing it slightly and letting blood leak out onto it. The makeshift heart started to beat.

 

They picked the thing up, feeling its odd, artificial pulse in their hands. “Please work,” they mumbled, looking at Wendy's ghost before gently pressing the heart to her. The ghost blinked, then her body started to reform, clothes and all. Webber looked away, it was pretty bad looking. Once she was done reviving, her feet hit the ground, and she looked at her hands, head tilted slightly.

 

“...You really are something, Webber,” she mumbled, looking herself over. She wasn't damaged, but she did look a mite paler than usual.

 

Webber practically tackled her in a hug, sobbing violently. The girl wheezed softly in surprise, pausing for a few moments before hugging them back. “I'm fine, Webber. Don't worry about me. I'm all better, see?”

 

“I thought-- I th-thought you we-were d-dead…” Webber mumbled between sobs, fur on their face practically soaked through. “I th-thought you were dead and i-it was my fault and…” They trailed off, deciding instead to just bury their face into Wendy’s shoulder for comfort. The girl sighed, patting Webber’s back.

 

“Well, I’m not. I’m alive, and I’m just fine, alright? No need for you to cry.” Webber nodded slowly, sniffling and hiccuping. “But that was… odd, what you did. Do you think you could teach everyone else how to make those?”

 

Webber pulled away, rubbing their eyes. “...I… I think we can,” they nodded. They weren’t really thinking about what they should do when they made it, but they remembered what they did, at least. Wendy nodded, picking her things up off the ground.

 

“We should get back to base. Grab all the stuff you can.” Webber nodded, starting to grab all of the silk and glands and meat. They still didn’t really know what happened to the nest. Did  _ they _ do that? They didn’t remember doing it. Maybe it was their other half. Whatever it was, though, it saved them and Wendy, so they were fine with it. They put all of the material they could into their bag, grabbing the traps and putting them away, too.

 

They took one last look at the wreckage, then left with Wendy for their camp.

 

* * *

 

 

“See, you just take the gland and wrap the grass around it. And then you have to bleed on it.” Webber showed their friend the heart they’d made, though they hadn’t activated it. They’d had enough blood loss for one day, they didn’t wanna black out. Wendy nodded, having been following along with a makeshift heart of her own. It wasn’t perfect, but it’d work, and that was all that mattered in the long run.

 

“And then you give it to a ghost, and they revive,” Wendy finished, placing her heart on the ground. Webber nodded, staring at the awful looking thing in their hands. They only noticed Wendy was looking at them when she tapped their shoulder, head tilted. “You’re really distracted, Webber,” she commented, expression blank. Still, they could tell she was concerned. There was always a tell. Webber sighed, putting their heart down.

 

“Yeah, sorry, it’s just… Do you think  _ I _ did that? The nest?” They asked, frowning. “I don’t remember doing it, I just… It was there one second, then it was all torn up and all the spiders were dead.”

 

“...I don’t know for sure. Maybe. But either way, it saved us, so I’m not going to complain,” Wendy replied, voice flat. Still, they could tell she was a bit concerned. About what, they didn’t know.

 

“It’s just like… I feel like a monster.” After all, those spiders wouldn’t have done anything to them if they’d left the nest alone. The word  _ monster _ still left a bitter taste in their mouth, considering the circumstances. Wendy put a firm hand on their shoulder, waiting until they looked at her to say anything.

 

“You could  _ never _ be a monster, Webber,” she replied simply, a rare break of emotion in her voice. Worry, some confusion, and… maybe disbelief? “Never think of yourself that way. A monster wouldn’t have saved me, would it?” Webber couldn’t help but sniffle, rubbing their eyes.

 

“I guess not. Thank you, Wendy.”

 

“Any time.”

 

* * *

 

 

“Caught one!” Webber called, panting. The rabbit had run right into the spider’s trap, it just needed a bit of… coaxing. They picked up the live rabbit, holding it up so Wendy could see.

 

“Nice,” the girl replied, pulling a familiar flower out of her bag. “That’ll do. Hold it down for a second.” Webber nodded, putting the rabbit on the ground beside the flower and holding it there. Wendy raised her spear, then quickly sliced into the rabbit, killing it quickly. This wasn’t Webber’s favorite activity by a long shot, but it was the only way to summon Abigail once she faded. The flower glowed briefly, and the spirit of Wendy’s sister quickly appeared with a ghostly sigh.

 

“Yay! Hi, Abigail!” Webber smiled brightly, clapping their clawed hands together. “Just make sure you don’t try to fight a herd of beefalo again, that was a bad  _ bad _ idea.” Abigail gave Webber the most unimpressed look a ghost could have, which just made the spider giggle.

 

“I think we should head back to camp now,” Wendy said, looking up at the lowering sun. Their job was done, Abi was here now, an extra layer of protection who had no serious risk of death, and a faithful companion. Two was company, but three was a party!

 

“Okay!” Webber chirped, heading off toward camp. They had more than enough time to get back. “I think we’re growing on Mr. Higgsbury. He fixed our boo-boos earlier.” Wendy nodded, pretty relaxed. Even though he seemed kind of exasperated by the situation ( _ How did you two get so hurt? Where’d this one even  _ come _ from? Be more careful next time!) _ , Wilson  _ did _ care enough to fix them up, and that was enough for them to cheer about. 

 

“He just has to get used to you being around. Then everything will be fine,” Wendy replied, putting her spear back in her bag. Webber nodded, a cheerful skip in their step. Abigail floated nearby, clearly watching for any threats. Her presence made Webber feel a bit safer, like a security blanket. They didn't need her protection that often, but when they did, it was apparent.

 

“ _ It isn't like he hated you, Webber. He was only reluctant to trust you because of your appearance, _ ” the ghost said, barely audible through the ominous whispers. She could speak louder sometimes, but Webber would rather she save her energy. “ _ He shouldn't judge books by their covers, but I'm not surprised that he does. Either way, he'll get used to you in time, he knows you're not a threat, and everyone else makes it known that you can be trusted. _ ”

 

“Thank you, Abigail,” Webber said with a smile, limbs on their head twitching. “I'm glad he's getting used to us! I know we look pretty scary, but we don't try to be.”

 

“We know, Webber. You're not scary to me either way.” Wendy shrugged, tucking her hair behind her ears. “Of course you look like a spider, but it's… Endearing. I think if you didn't look the way you do, it’d just feel really unnatural.” Funny coming from the one who hung around ghosts as a hobby, but Webber would never say that for the worry of upsetting her.

 

“It’s nice to hear you say that, actually,” Webber replied, smiling wide. So wide their teeth poked out of their mouth, but Wendy didn’t mind, and Abigail certainly didn’t either. The spider hybrid blinked all of their eyes, looking over at Abigail, though it was hard to tell due to their stark white eyes. Their thoughts shifted to the telltale hearts they’d made-- named so by Wilson, of course. Could they work on Abigail? Wendy would be so happy if they did! Webber would have to try.

 

* * *

 

 

Webber was seated outside the camp, sitting behind one of their new tents, though they stayed in the light of the campfire so the night monster wouldn’t go for them. They placed the inactive heart in their lap, then brought their wrist up to their mouth, making a cut in their wrist with a fang and drizzling the blood over the heart. As soon as enough blood had spilled onto it, it began to beat, just as expected. They considered the makeshift thing for a few moments, then breathed in. The worst that could happen would be that it wouldn’t work and they lost a bit of blood, but that meant it’d be readied for use anyways. They stood up, legs slightly shaky. Maybe they should’ve waited a bit, they’d just done this a day or two ago, after all. Still, they just wanted to try, see if it would work.

 

It didn’t take long to spot Abigail, hovering outside Wendy and Webber’s tent. They walked into the open, heart in hands. “Hey, Abi!” They called, spider limbs twitching slightly. “We have something to try, can you come here?” The ghost blinked at them, then moved towards them, whispering voices growing louder with her approach.

 

“ _ Yes, Webber? _ ” She questioned, clearly curious. “ _ What is--  _ what did you do to your wrist?!” They flinched, though they weren’t really afraid. It was nice to know Abi cared, but at the same time, they didn’t really want her to worry too much. They’d be fine.

 

“Ehe, uh, about that.” They cleared their throat, pulling the heart from behind their back. Abigail gave them a mildly confused look, the best she could manage as a ghost. Right, she didn’t know. “Uh, these revive people. I guess Wendy hasn’t had time to catch you up on things.” They’d rather not say how they figured out how to make the things. They and Abi were friends, but at the same time, Abigail cared about Wendy way more. She might be upset if she knew that Wendy had  _ died _ on their watch when Abigail was trusting them to keep her safe.

 

“ _ No, she hasn’t. So you did that to yourself? _ ” She sounded a little bit irritated still, possibly even more so now that she knew it was self-inflicted.

 

“Yeah, it needs blood to work.”

 

“ _ Who exactly figured out how to make these? _ ”

 

“Oh, um. Me. Kind of.  _ Anyways! _ ” They made a nervous, odd chittering noise. Not a human sound, that was for sure, but they didn’t care all that much. It sounded nicer than the hissing. “I wanted to see if maybe it’d work on you. Is that okay?”

 

Abigail paused, looking thoughtful. “... _ I suppose so. It’s not like anything bad will happen if it doesn’t work. _ ” Webber nodded, stepping closer and gently pressing the heart into Abigail.

 

One mississippi, two mississippi, three mississippi, four…

 

Nothing happened.

 

Webber sighed, putting the heart into their backpack. “It was worth a shot. Wendy would’ve been so happy if that worked.”

 

Abigail didn’t seem too downcast, maybe it’s what she was expecting. “ _ I didn’t quite expect it to work. It would’ve been nice if it did. Still, though, thank you for thinking of me, Webber. You’re a sweet kid. _ ”

 

“You’re not that much older than me,” Webber argued, crossing their arms. Abigail let out a chuckle, closing her eyes in a way that seemed like it’d be a smile, if she had a mouth. Having Abigail around was nice, especially during the longer nights when Webber was on watch. They enjoyed the company. So, they spent the rest of the night warding off the shadows, Abigail helping and making sure they stayed awake.

 

It was nice to have a sort-of family again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> -. --- - .... .. -. --. / .. ... / --. --- -. . / ..-. --- .-. . ...- . .-.


	4. balloon animals! balloon animals!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Webber could die. They could be crushed right under this thing's feet.
> 
> But for their friends, they'll risk it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i lied accidentally i finished this up really fast gnkdgjk
> 
> this was also originally gonna be split into 2 chapters but i decided to just stick them together

Webber was picking some grass and twigs, grabbing rocks and flint along the way. A few berries never hurt, either, or carrots. Filler for the crockpot.

 

The more time they spent in this strange world, the more they figured out. This world was meticulously made. That was something that struck them as odd. Things were harder than they were in the normal world, but it was mostly for lack of society. A few mean puppies couldn't take down an actual town, but they could take a few people. If not for the odd inhabitants, it'd actually be  _ easier _ . Plants grew faster, food was easier to make, there was even magic of some kind! It just seemed so weird.

 

Their confusion about the world was bolstered by Wilson's agreement. After all, he was the scientist, he was the smartest, and he  _ agreed _ it was weird. The world was unkind, but balanced in a way that made survival still achievable. As long as they worked together. It was like a game or a storybook, dragons would be impossible to defeat in the real world, but in fiction the hero was given the impossible powers and strength and tools they needed to get the job done, even if it was difficult.

 

They had a lot of free time to think, when they were doing mindless tasks or when they were on fire duty. Certainly they'd never had to think about these things at home. Nor did they have someone with them all the time to share their thoughts with, even if he didn't talk very much. They could tell he was listening when they rambled out loud.

 

Other than that, things were pretty much as mundane as they could be in this world. They'd been growing closer with their friends, and Wilson had finally warmed up to them! They think the last nail in the coffin was when they wove themselves a silk beard in an attempt to be like him. It was an absolute riot to all four of their companions, but Webber didn't mind! They liked making people laugh. Besides, extra silk was always good.

 

They were collecting the last twig in their sight when they heard it.

 

_ Thump. _

 

_ Thump. _

 

**_Thump_ ** _.  _

 

Was the ground shaking? What was  _ that _ ? Their spidery legs twitched, instinct yelling to run away from it, but their more sensitive half turned tail, running toward camp. They had to warn everyone, who knew what that was?!

 

They ran as fast as they could until they made it to base, panting. It was a stroke of luck that everyone was near enough to hear their yelling. “G-ground shaking! Trouble on its way!” They called as loudly as they could between their wheezing. Something that big was never good news, never ever. Their yell quickly caught the attention of their group, who quickly finished up what they were doing, or just dropped it where it was.

 

“Did you see what it was, Webber?” Willow asked, glaring into the treeline to make sure she couldn't see anything.

 

“No, I'm sorry, we just know it's  _ big _ .” Webber looked around nervously, half of them still in fight or flight and their other half standing their ground firmly. They wouldn't leave their friends. Wilson squinted, clearly thinking.

 

“...It could be a bearger,” Wilson guessed.

 

“A what?” Webber tilted their head.

 

“They're huge bear badgers. They eat whatever they can get and they're  _ very _ destructive. They're neutral as long as you don't get close and you don't steal their food, but it could do some serious damage to the camp if they get close.”

 

_ Thump _ .

 

The ground wasn't shaking yet, but they heard it well enough. Their companions didn't seem to hear, though.

 

“I hear it. It's coming our way,” they mumbled, eyes wide.

 

“Okay, then we have to stop it.” Willow started rooting through chests, tossing a log armor and football helmet at each of the three. Webber slipped theirs on, knowing what the idea was. “We cut it off before it gets here and wrecks things, and we kill it.”

 

“That's the worst idea you've ever had,” Wilson replied, staring at her in disbelief.

 

“Well, it's that or get our camp wrecked,” she replied. “Wendy, grab the hearts. Try to stay out of the fighting, just make sure you revive wherever possible. If we have any salves or poultices, grab those too.” Wendy just nodded, going to the chests to do as Willow asked. “Webber, do you think you can get some spider friends before it gets here?” Webber nodded quickly, already running.

 

They found a nest quickly, gently tapping it to get a few spiders to come out. What resulted was not what they expected, but it was probably better. Eight limbs broke through the nest, and the creature they belonged to stood up. Webber had to crane their neck back to see her face. A spider queen. The appendages on their head moved rapidly as a harsh chattering left their mouth, a language that one half of Webber barely understood and the other half excelled at.

 

“ _ Need help. Big thing coming. Home in danger. Forest in danger. Please help. _ ” The queen stared at them, then stretched her long limbs, letting out a chattering of her own. Warrior spiders crawled from the nest on her back onto the floor. They'd follow them into battle. “ _ Thank you. Human friends and ghost friend. Please don't hurt. _ ” The spider queen let out a hiss of understanding.

 

With that, Webber started running, spiders in tow. They needed to get there before the bearger. Before anything happened. Before their friends got hurt. And they did.

 

The bearger was huge. It stood about five times Webber's height on all fours. They couldn't imagine seeing it on its back legs. Maybe they should've convinced some more spiders, but it was too late for that now. They heard the rest of their group running up, though at Webber's signal, the queen was already rushing towards the huge thing. They pulled their tentacle spike from their bag, gripping it tightly.

 

“En garde!” They cried, running toward the huge thing. They could very well be running to their death. This thing could wipe out their whole group. But they wouldn't let it.

 

The spider queen got there first, rearing up and stabbing the horrid thing with her front most legs. It made a sizeable gash in its back. The bearger roared, slashing back at the queen. She tried to dodge, but she was still scratched badly on one of her limbs. Her spider warriors lunged at the bearger, biting its legs and quickly getting squashed. 

 

_ That could be us. It could smash us. But we need to protect our friends. We have to do this. They can bring us back if they have to. They won't let us down.  _

 

They were still a ways away, not wanting to tire out before they had to fight this thing. The spider queen bit into the bearger’s shoulder. The bearger swiped at her face. The queen dug her talons into its forepaw. The bearger reared up and smashed its forepaws into her, smashing her. The queen had fallen.

 

_ It's going to kill us. We're going to die. But they'll bring us back. We're scared. We don't want to die,dying is scary. We're afraid, but we can be brave. We have to be brave. _

 

Willow and Wilson had caught up, longer strides letting them pass Webber.  _ Please be safe. Please be careful.  _ Webber kept running toward it, though couldn't get there before Wilson and Willow. The two adults had obviously been in this sort of situation before, dodging its attacks and avoiding getting hit. Willow was the first to get swiped, and though the bulk of the hit was absorbed by her armor, she and her weapon were tossed away.

 

_ Please get up. Please get up. _

 

And she did, shakily rising and grabbing her weapon. Everything was a blur for Webber, hit, hit, dodge, hit, hit, dodge-- smash.

 

The bearger reared up on its back paws, and for a moment Webber was afraid their friends would get the same horrible send off as the queen. Luckily, it missed, but the shockwave still hit them both. 

 

_ Be okay. Be okay. _

 

Webber was stopped dead, frozen. Fight or flight was battling in their mind. They saw that their friends were still okay, but not by much. They would get smashed.

 

Fight won out. 

 

A rock struck the giant's head, making it growl in irritation. “Hey! Ugly! You want a fight?! I'll give you one!” Webber hissed, brandishing their spike. They didn't think they could take this thing, especially not alone, but they could buy their friends some time. Lead it away, it won't get to the base. Their head hurt. 

 

The bearger dropped onto all fours, chasing after them as they ran full speed into the forest. They thought they could hear Wendy yell for them. But they didn't slow down, they couldn't, not now. They kept up the pace for their friends. Once they were far from camp, they whipped around, spike at the ready. The bearger lumbered through the trees, low growl making their head hurt worse.

 

_ It's going to smash us. There's no way we can beat it. But we have to try. For them. For our friends. They'll be safe. _

 

They lashed out with the spike, striking the bearger in a foreleg. One more hit scraped its leg,then Webber tuck and rolled to the side, dodging a swipe. Like Wilson had taught them. Everything had a pattern, every enemy was predictable. Hit, hit, dodge, hit, hit, dodge. 

 

Hit, hit,  _ smash _ .

 

But not this time.

 

Webber backed up enough to dodge the beast’s claws, then dropped onto all fours, leaping over the shockwave. The wave knocked down many trees, leveling them in instants. They landed in a roll, then paused as they heard wood groaning. One of the trees stood, lumbering towards them. The bearger clearly decided that was a bigger problem, turning their attention away from Webber.

 

The two fought, giant versus giant. But one thing was different. The bearger was now outnumbered, another wooden beast standing up, then a third. All three could take the bearger, easily.

 

Webber had other problems to attend to. Everything looked odd. Shadowy beings watched at the edges of their vision, some even bold enough to be in the middle. Oh, that one was coming closer… and closer… and it reared up… and…

 

Everything went black.

 

* * *

 

 

Webber's eyes slowly opened. They were alive? How? Surely the bearger would've smashed them, or the tree guards, and they weren't in their tent. In fact, they didn't recognize where they were at all. They blinked, was something on their head? They reached up and poked a flower petal. A flower crown? Who gave them that?

 

They slowly sat up, rubbing their head. Everything looked more or less normal now, much better than when they were fighting the bearger. But who helped them? This wasn't their camp. Slowly, they raised onto their feet, stomach growling. They made a low chittering noise, still not feeling the best. But they wanted to go back to the place they called home before it got dark.

 

They looked around, there was the ash of what used to be a campfire on the ground, and they had been laying on a straw roll. They blinked, two four six eight, and their spidery appendages twitched. Was that bearger fur on the ground? They picked it up, head tilted, then shoved it into their pack, along with some weird logs and some fur tufts. Odd. It wasn't stealing if they were the one who kind-of killed the thing. Indirectly.

 

They blinked again. Were those footsteps? They whipped around, face to face with a lanky man wearing a face full of makeup. They jolted and stepped back with a hiss of alarm, more surprised than afraid. The man blinked, then made a sort of “calm down” motion, and Webber squinted. Why was he so quiet? They didn't even hear his footsteps when he was sneaking up on them. Almost like…

 

Oh. Oh! “A mime! Oh!” They covered their mouth, only slightly embarrassed. The mime didn't seem to mind very much, just smiling and clapping. “So you can't talk then?” The mime shook his head. “...Um… I hope it's okay that we took the bearger stuff.” Another nod. “Were you the one who saved us?” Yet another nod.

 

“Thank you, then.” They paused, blinking, then glanced at their clawed hands. It was a bit different having claws like they did, but maybe… “ _ Do you know ASL? _ ” They signed, a little clumsy, but still understandable. The mime seemed pretty overjoyed, nodding and clapping. “Okay! We're Webber!” They chirped, smiling brightly. 

 

“ _ I'm Wes. It's very nice to meet you, Webber. _ ” The mime signed back, smile on his face.

 

“Nice to meet you Mr. Wes!” They smiled. As nice as this was, they wanted to get back to their group. Surely they were worried sick. But they couldn't just abandon Wes, not after he saved their life. They blinked, two four six eight, thinking. “...Hey, Wes? Would you wanna come to our camp with us? I mean, I'm sure our group would be happy to have you, since you saved us and everything.” Wes considered this for only a moment, then nodded happily. Another member to add to their disjointed little family.

It was dusk when they finally got back to the camp. The first thing they heard was Willow flicking her lighter. Open, closed, open, closed. An easy tell to know if she was stressed. They saw Wendy, flower in hand, ripping off petals one by one. Another tell. Abigail was hovering around, almost pacing. Wilson didn't have any sort of habit, but he was an open book. He just looked extremely worried. He was probably the easiest to read. 

 

The first person to spot them was Abigail, who quickly alerted Wendy to Webber's presence. The pair rushed them, Wendy practically bear-hugging them. “Don't do that again, you dumb bug,” she muttered, obvious relief in her normally blank voice. “We thought you  _ died. _ ”

 

Webber wrapped their arms around Wendy, bright smile on their face. “You should trust us more! We can handle ourselves, I'm a big kid!” They stuck out their tongue, giggling. “Have some fai-- hey!” They pouted as Wendy pet the fur on their head backwards. The girl let go, turning her attention to Wes. Willow and Wilson had noticed them now, too. Willow went straight to them, scooping them up like a cat and hugging them close.

 

“Don't run off like that, kiddo! You scared us all half to death!” She scolded before setting the spider back down.

 

“You had us really worried. We were going to go out looking for you in the morning,” Wilson said, still looking worried.

 

“Who's this?” Wendy questioned, breaking up the reunion. Webber turned their attention to her and Wes, who waved a bit awkwardly.

 

“That's Wes! He's a mime, so he doesn't talk, but he does know sign!” Webber smiled brightly, appendages on their head raising. “He saved us, I think we passed out while the bearger was fighting the big tree guys. And look, the trees won! Mostly.” They pulled the fur and the weird logs out of their pack, smiling.

 

“Well, Wes, any friend of Webber's is a friend of ours. You're welcome to stay if you like,” Willow offered, giving Wilson a glare. That quickly shut up any argument he had. Wes nodded, clapping his hands happily. Another addition to their family, and Webber was home where they belonged.

 

They were happy to be home safe.

 

“...Hey, Mr. Wes?” The mime looked at them, head tilted.

 

“Can you make balloon animals?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> -.-- --- ..- / .- .-. . / ... -- .- .-. - . .-. / - .... .- -. / - .... . / --- - .... . .-. ...


	5. he said he could help us

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> All of the survivors were tricked.
> 
> But maybe, for Webber, that's okay.

_ “Put that thing down!” Their mother called, annoyance in her voice. Webber looked down at the thing they were holding, a tarantula. They frowned, giving it a gentle pet before putting it back where they found it. _

 

_ “I'm not gonna get bit! I know how to handle them,” they argued, huffing in annoyance. Their mother sighed, hands on her hips. _

 

_ “Well, you can never be too careful, and you know how your father feels about you messing with spiders like you do,” she replied, grimacing. “I don't see what you find appealing in them, but you don't want to get bit. It'll hurt, and you could get very very sick.” _

 

_ “I know,” Webber grumbled, staring at the floor. Spiders were one of the animals that actually  _ liked _ them. Their father's goats certainly didn't. They didn't particularly care for getting charged at by one of the things. Spiders made sense, they just didn't want you messing with them too much, the goats were just ornery. It wasn't like they had many human friends to speak of. Not allowed to go into the study, not allowed to go into the kitchen, don't go too far outside, don't break anything inside, so what were they  _ supposed  _ to do? Just sit there all day? Do nothing?  _

 

_ They’d rather be out with their grandpa, but he only came around every now and then. They would rather be fishing or playing chess. But no, they just had to stay here and be a good kid and not get into trouble. _

 

_ Life was boring. _

 

* * *

 

 

_ Another boring day at their boring house out in the middle of nowhere. Webber sighed, rubbing their eyes. The radio was on, playing a ragtime song. At least that was a positive, ragtime was nice. _

 

_ They sat up in their bed, tapping their foot against the ground. Bored, bored, bored. They didn't have anything to do. They'd even checked on all the spiders, even though their parents didn't like it much. They wouldn't take Webber's one hobby, no matter how distasteful they found it. _

 

_ The radio crackled and halted, and then a voice came through. _

 

_ “Say, pal, you’re looking pretty bored.” _

 

_ Webber blinked, looking over to the radio. “...Um… Yes?” They felt kinda stupid, just… Talking to a radio. As if it could actually hear them. Didn’t even have a microphone.  _

 

_ “I have a secret place that I can bring you to. It’s much more fun there.” _

 

_ Webber blinked twice, squinting. “And what do I have to do?” They asked, lifting the radio. _

 

_ “It’s just a walk out into the forest, kid.” Webber blinked again, considering. They weren’t supposed to go into the forest, or out of the property at all, but the promise of an adventure was tempting. “It’s not far,” the voice clarified, and Webber squinted. _

 

_ “Okay, I’ll go.” They stuffed the radio in their bag, hauling it over their shoulders. “Don’t make too much noise until we’re out of the house.” _

 

_ “One more thing, you’ll need something sharp.” _

 

* * *

 

 

_ “...ber…  _ Webber! Wake up.” Their shoulder was jostled, though more gently than it could've been, and Webber opened their eyes, two-four-six-eight. Wendy was sitting next to them, staring at them worriedly.

 

“Hhh-- huh? Oh. Good morning, Wendy!” They smiled, sitting up. “What's up?”

 

“You were spasming,” she answered simply. She looked worried. She didn't hide it as much when they were the only one who saw.

 

“Oh.” Their thoughts went back to their dream for a few seconds, expression dropping, then it rose right back up. “Well, we're up! We should go work, winter's coming soon.” Wendy gave them a look that said she wasn't buying it, but before she could argue, Webber was already up and out of the tent. They completely bypassed their other group members, going off into the forest. Partly for some time alone, partly for a plan of theirs.

 

* * *

 

 

“Mr. Higgsbury!”

 

Webber had gone looking for Wilson, a special gift in their bag. It wasn't long until they ran into the scientist, he was in camp, tweaking the science machine. Webber still didn't know how it worked, but they also just didn't really care. Weird science magic stuff wasn't their forte. The man paused in his work, turning to Webber.

 

“Oh, hello, Webber,” he greeted, slight smile on his face. It was nice that he really was getting used to them. “Is something wrong?” Webber's smile became forced for a brief moment, wondering whether or not Wendy had tattled, but they brushed it off. No, they trusted Wendy not to do that. She might pester them later, sure, but she'd never tell the others about something that they obviously didn't want to talk about.

 

“We made you something!” They grinned, pulling out a red scarf and handing it to the scientist. They could tell by his expression that he was pleasantly surprised, but he was trying to hide it with his usual grumpiness.

 

“Oh, a scarf? You know, we don't really need these until winter,” he commented.

 

“Weeeell, if you don't want it we can take it b--”

 

“No, I want it.” He gripped the scarf tighter, as if he were worried Webber might actually take it back. Webber smiled brightly, giggling.

 

“Okay! We hope you like it, Mr. Higgsbury!” They smiled, then hurried off in another direction. They'd look for something else to do. As long as they kept busy.

 

* * *

 

 

“Hey, kiddo, got a sec?” Willow called. Webber turned around, blinking at her two-four-six-eight.

 

“Yep?” They came over quickly, eager to help more. Had to keep busy.

 

“Here,” she replied, shoving a lighter into their hands. Not hers, they noticed. It had a little spiderweb doodled on the side. Cute! “I want you to go burn some trees, get some charcoal. Try not to burn too many, yeah?” Webber stared at the lighter, feeling like they had more power right now than any kid should ever have. They looked back up at Willow, nodding.

 

“Okay! We'll do our best!” They smiled brightly, heading off to the forest. Burn a small chunk of trees, not a forest fire. How far apart did it have to be to not spread? They'd just wing it. They got to a forest, looking at the trees and trying to find a smaller group. They picked out a few lone trees, spending at least a few minutes trying to figure out how to work their lighter. Flick. Flick.

 

The fire came to life, and Webber hesitated, then held the flame to the nearest tree until it caught fire. They backed up quickly, heat hitting their face rather harshly. Oh. Oh boy. Was it supposed to spread that far?  _ Oh no. _

 

“Oh, oof,” they heard Willow mumble. They didn't turn to her, just transfixed on the fact that half the forest was getting taken out. “Well, good news! We have plenty of charcoal now and your fires are as cute as you.”

 

Webber blinked, two-four-six-eight, looking up at the woman. “So you're not mad?”

 

“Nah. I've done a lot worse than that, kiddo.” She gave them a pat on the head, watching the fire spread until it went out. “Trees can be replanted. We're all safe, that's what really matters.”

 

“That sounds really cheesy, Ms. Willow.”

 

“Y’know, it sure does. Let's gather some of this charcoal and get back to camp,” she said, starting to chop. Webber helped out, picking up the charcoal and pinecones along the way. 

 

Wilson was gonna kill them both.

 

* * *

 

 

Webber watched closely as Wes worked on his balloon dog, trying to copy the mime. He finished up his balloon, making a “ta-da” sort of motion. Webber was still trying with theirs, they couldn't really grasp how exactly to tie the thing. 

 

“I think you'll have to take ours off our hands, Mr. Wes,” they said with a smile, passing the half-finished balloon to the mime. He nodded, finishing up the balloon for them and passing it back to them. “Thank you! We've discovered that we’re no good at balloon animals.” It was a struggle just to keep from popping the thing with their claws. Wes smiled, obviously unbothered. He seemed happy that Webber liked the balloons, if anything. Wes didn't talk as much as the others, even with sign language, but Webber didn't mind that. They could chat enough for the both of them.

 

“Oh, that reminds me, I made you something!” Webber grinned, rooting around in their pack. They pulled out a light red vest, big smile on their face. “I know it's not winter yet, but it will be soon, so I just wanted to give this to you ahead of time!” The mime smiled warmly, gladly taking the gift and putting it in his bag for now.

 

“I’m gonna go catch a few butterflies. I'll see you later, Wes!” They smiled, getting up and running off. The mime waved a silent goodbye, still smiling.

 

* * *

 

 

Webber sat with a line in the water, staring blankly at the bobber. They remembered fishing trips with grandpa. Those were always fun.

 

_ “Say, pal, you don't look so good.” _

 

Their grip on the pole trembled, eyes narrowing.

 

_ “I can help you _ . _ ” _

 

Helping.  _ This _ was helping.

 

_ “All you have to do is say yes.” _

 

Their hold shook more, and they hissed, throwing the pole to the side. “Help  _ yourself _ , you big dumb meanie fartface  _ jerk _ !” They hissed, though the person it was intended for likely didn't hear it. They let out a sniffle, rubbing their eyes. Why them? Why’d he mess with  _ them _ ? They were picked on enough as it was! The spider-hybrid wheezed softly, wiping the tears from their eyes.

 

“Webber?”

 

Their eyes shot open, whipping around. Oh boy, Wendy was here. She looked worried. Webber forced a smile, though it was a pretty sorry attempt. “Oh! Hi W-Wendy!” Their voice cracked, as if it weren't obvious enough. Wendy looked slightly irritated that they'd even tried.

 

“Webber, you're crying. I don't think you could convince me even if you did manage to lie.” She came closer, sitting next to them. Webber couldn't meet her eyes. “...You know I'm your friend, don't you? You can talk to me. I won't tell anyone, and I know you'd do the same for me.” Webber blinked all at once, sniffling and letting out a quiet sob before turning around and clinging to the girl. They'd never really had anyone they considered a  _ friend _ before coming here. 

 

“Thank you, Wendy,” they mumbled, voice shaky. Wendy nodded softly, patting their back. They really were grateful for her. For Wilson and Willow and Wes too, of course, but for Wendy especially.

 

“...Let's get back to camp. It's getting dark,” she mumbled, pulling the spider kid to their feet. They nodded, wiping their face one more time and grabbing the fishing rod they'd tossed to the side earlier. At least it didn't hit the water. They and Wendy walked back to base, their home.

 

Everyone was home now. It was nice having everyone together. Laughing and messing around instead of off doing their own things. These people were like family. Webber smiled, a bit withdrawn from the conversations, still thinking.

 

Maybe he had helped. They had a family that didn't mind their odd hobbies. They were useful here. They had something to do.

 

_ We're still mad at him. But only a little. _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> .... . / - .-. .. -.-. -.- . -.. / -.-- --- ..- --..-- / -.-- . - / -.-- --- ..- / --- ..-. ..-. . .-. / ..-. --- .-. --. .. ...- . -. . ... ...


	6. you're looking downright feral

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Webber finds something odd down in the caves. Not only that, but they get more in tune with their other half.

“It's really dark down here, huh, Mr. Higgsbury?”

 

The caves were _very_ dark. The only light sources were their lantern and the small plants scattered around that Webber had deemed “light bulbs”. Wilson didn't have the heart to argue with them. They'd been collecting the plants whenever they could as fuel for their light.

 

“It's to be expected. Who knows how far underground we are?” Wilson replied, raising the lantern to see more easily. Webber looked around, keeping their eyes peeled. It was only them and Wilson right now, the others were still up above, working on their own things. Wilson had found this place while mining, and came back with a few interesting facts. Including…

 

“You said there were spider friends down here?” Webber blinked, looking around dubiously. They didn't like it much down here, it was much too dark for their tastes. Wilson nodded silently, focusing on the task at hand. They had to admit, they weren't all that thrilled about being down here. Especially since their best friend didn't come with. They didn't blame her, honestly, it was really dreary. Webber blinked again, two-four-six-eight, trying to adjust their eyes to the darkness, but it was impossible. Just like it was outside. _Why couldn't we have gotten_ your _vision, hmm? Or some cool wings? Because spiders don't have wings. Don't be a party pooper._

 

They blinked, then put on their miner's hat, turning it on. “We're gonna go explore. Yell if you need us!” They called before running off. They heard Wilson argue, but he didn't try to stop them. It was a big sign of trust. They pulled out their pickaxe, finding a stalagmite… stalactite… a pointy rock thingy. They looked it over, then decided to bust it up with their pick. Rocks, gold, flint, nothing that abnormal, but they put it in their bag anyway.

 

_Clunk._

 

Their hand hit something while they were grabbing their things. They blinked, taking a closer look. Were those _bones_ ? They looked super old. Webber blinked, sitting on the ground and picking the pieces up. “...Who might _you_ belong to?” They mumbled, turning the bones over in their hands. “Not anything we've seen, that's for sure. I wonder.”

 

“Webber!” Their head shot up and quickly turned in the direction of Wilson's voice.

 

“Coming!” They called, stuffing the bones in their bag without a second thought.

 

For a second there, they could've sworn the fossils _pulsed_.

 

* * *

 

 

“Aughhh, we never wanna go in another cave ever again,” Webber grumbled, grateful for the sun now more than ever. It was so chilly down there. Even with their fur.

 

“Well, I'm sorry Webber, but you might have to,” Wilson replied, working on weaving a new trap. Their other half itched to get their claws on it, but they had at least a little respect, so they held off. _He's doing it fine. You don't have to mess with it._ Glad as they were that he liked being helpful, they still didn't really get the whole manners thing. “You're the only one who can talk to spiders, and there's lots of them down there. You saw.”

 

“Yes, we did,” they sighed in irritation, fluffing up their fur. They'd do it for their group, of course, but they didn't have to like it. After all, they weren't a cave spider. They weren't into damp dingy holes. “You know we'll help, but we won't like it.”

 

“That's fine. Thank you for your help today, Webber.” Wilson gave the spider hybrid a pat on the head, Webber smiled, nodding.

 

“You're welcome, Mr. Higgsbury,” they replied with a bright smile. They stood up, stretching their legs.”We're gonna go find Wendy, if that's okay.”

 

“Yep, you're free to go. Go have fun.” Wilson waved them off, and they gladly left to find their friend.

 

* * *

 

 

“Do you hear that?”

 

“Hear what?”

 

The limbs on Webber's head twitched nervously, anxiously. “I don't know. It sounds far away.” Wendy frowned, obviously a bit worried. She trusted their judgement, after all.

 

“Do you think we should head back?”

 

“Maybe.”

 

They'd gone out into a desert to collect some tumbleweeds. They were a good source of twigs and grass, and plus they had toys in them sometimes! It wasn't too far from base, but it was still a bit of a walk. All of Webber's eyes were wide, looking around nervously. They suddenly didn't feel so safe. Especially since Abigail hadn't revived since the last time she got poofed.

 

It was a few moments until they heard the sound again. _Barking._ They opened their mouth, but Wendy cut them off. “I heard. We need to get home,” she said quickly, starting to walk back. Webber quickly followed her, still looking around nervously. The doggies were on their way. They could hear it.

 

“We should hurry,” Webber said quickly, picking up the pace. Wendy grabbed their wrist, clearly keeping an eye out.

 

“Don’t start running. You’ll tire yourself out before they even get here,” she said quietly, letting go. Webber nodded silently, limbs on their head twitching. Everyone had a tell, including them. Usually they could manage to hide their twitches or disguise them as something else, but right now? Hearing the dogs barking in the distance? They had other things to worry about. If they got back to camp, they’d probably be able to fend all of the dogs off. Right now, though, they were alone in the desert, not even with Abigail on their side.

 

They listened closely as the hounds got ever closer, the barking getting louder as the monsters closed distance. No spider dens nearby. They’d have to just fend for themselves or run. “Wendy,” they said softly, eyes wide. They were here. Webber could _hear_ them right behind them.

 

“Just keep moving, okay? Keep walking. Don’t run or you might draw their attention, and don’t turn around,” Wendy mumbled, still walking. Webber nodded silently, but it was easier said than done. It was hard to just stay calm when death was literally nipping at your heels. They tried not to speed up, pushing away their fight or flight. They had to listen to Wendy, she knew what she was doing. They trusted her. But in the end, their anxiety won out, and they looked back.

 

Right there.

 

The hound behind them growled, putting a paw forward threateningly. Webber froze up, staring at it. _Move move move move move, come on!_ No matter how hard they tried, they were just… frozen. The dog tensed, readying to pounce them. This wasn’t good. This was really, really bad.

 

The dog leaped at them, and they shut their eyes tight, waiting for the bite that never actually came. They blinked, cracking an eye open. The dog had been shoved back, and now Wendy was between them and it, tentacle spike in hand. Was her arm bleeding? That wasn’t good. The limbs on their head twitched, first nervously, then raising up threateningly. It hurt Wendy. It hurt their best friend. They let out a threatening hiss, baring their fangs. It wasn’t about to get away with that.

 

Wendy glanced back at them, but the hound had obviously decided they were a bigger threat. It knocked Wendy to the side, going straight to Webber and rearing up to bite. Webber hissed again, tugging their tentacle spike out of their bag and hitting the creature as hard as they could with the pointy end. It let out a sharp whine, staggering from the hit, and Webber gripped their weapon, eyes narrow. The hound stood up, growling and trying to bite them a second time. The spider hybrid dodged around the bite, then retaliated with a bite of their own, sinking their long fangs into the dog’s side. It growled and whined, and it slowly stopped, going limp.

 

Wendy just… stared for a few moments. “...You have _venom_?” Webber blinked, dropping the hound awkwardly on the rocky ground.

 

“...Um… I guess so?” They shrugged, looking just as confused. “I dunno. I don’t just go around biting things, you know.” Wendy snorted in response, looking at the bite on her arm. It looked pretty bad. “We should get back to camp. Before something else happens.” They grabbed one of the monster’s teeth that had fallen out, putting it in their bag. Maybe they could use it for something. _I think I should give_ you _credit for that one, yeah? So thank you._

 

Off they went, back to camp.

 

* * *

 

 

Webber turned the fossil over in their hands, minding their claws. It seemed a bit duller since when they last looked. No more odd pulsing that they swore they’d seen.

 

“Weird,” they mumbled, touching the surface carefully. They hadn’t shown it to the others yet, it just didn’t seem important compared to everything else that happened that day. They weren’t sure if they even _should_ show anyone. It piqued their curiosity, and they were a bit worried that they might get it taken away. After all, a kid playing with old bones that came from something unknown probably wasn’t very safe, and letting them do it without interference wouldn’t be appealing to anyone. They blinked, two-four-six-eight, then put the bones back in their bag.

 

Maybe going back into the caves wouldn’t be too bad. Maybe they could find more of these.

 

In their bag, the bones pulsed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ..- -. -.-. --- ...- . .-. / - .... . / ... . -.-. .-. . - ... --..-- / -- --- -. ... - . .-. / -.-. .... .. .-.. -..


	7. something wicked

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There are many things in the woods, hidden away or lost where nobody would be likely to come across them on their own.
> 
> But sometimes, you're not alone.
> 
> Sometimes, the things aren't so mysterious.
> 
> And other times, the things will find _you_ instead.

“This clicks here, this… think this goes here… Hmm.”

 

Webber blinked, two-four-six-eight, clicking the fossils together. Like a jigsaw. Just had to find out where it connected. It was already coming together a bit, only missing a few pieces. They stepped back, admiring their handiwork.  _ You’re messing with things you shouldn’t be messing with,  _ kid.  _ I’m just putting it back together! What, is it gonna come back to life? It’ll be fine.  _ He still seemed pretty irritated, but obviously wasn’t gonna try to stop them. They wouldn’t listen anyway, more than likely. 

 

They’d started rebuilding the thing a ways out of the camp, where hopefully none of the others would discover it. They'd already gotten it almost fixed, they didn't want anyone taking it away now! That'd suck! They hadn't even told Wendy yet, mostly out of concern that she'd tell one of the adults and get the thing confiscated. Nobody had noticed them slipping away every now and then to find pieces of it, and they couldn't really complain too much since they always brought something normal back. The one who took issue most often was probably Wendy, which they did feel a little bad about. Just a little bit longer though, and then it'd be all done.

 

They blinked, staring at the thing. They still didn't know exactly what it was. They didn't even really know why they were rebuilding it. They just felt like they should. Their other half, however, had made it perfectly clear he was against it. Webber didn't really mind that, as long as he didn't try to mess with it. Webber backed up a bit, turning around and looking for anything to bring back. After all, they needed a convincing argument for why they were gone for an hour or two. Just had to get some berries, wood, mushro--

 

“Webber?”

 

Oh. Oh boy. “Did you follow us?” They asked, glaring indignantly at Wendy. She didn’t really look  _ surprised _ , more just entirely unamused.

 

“You’ve been acting suspicious ever since you went on that cave trip, Webber. I’m not stupid,” she replied, raising a brow. The limbs on Webber’s head drooped slightly.

 

“I didn’t say you were!” They said defensively, crossing their arms.  _ You kinda acted like she was. No, I didn’t! _

 

“Uh-huh. Anyways, what’s with…” She made a vague gesture to the skeleton behind them. “That. Thing. Where’d you even get all of these weird bones?” Webber looked away, arms still crossed and limbs on their head twitching nervously.

 

“We got them from the caves. In the rocks.” They let out a huff, refusing to meet Wendy’s gaze. She could get them in so much trouble if she told everyone else. The girl sighed, rubbing her face.

 

“ _ Webber _ . Really.  _ Really _ .” Webber deflated. Oh, she was  _ definitely _ gonna tell everyone. The jig was up. They could say goodbye to their archaeology. They blinked when she spoke up again. “I mean, I guess I get not telling everyone else, because adults can really suck sometimes. But you didn’t bring this up to me or Abi?  _ Really _ ? You know you can trust me not to tell if you say not to, right?” Webber paused, blinking two-four-six-eight.

 

“...So you’re not mad?” They asked quietly, worried.

 

“Mad? No. Irritated? A little. But I’m still not gonna tell anybody.” She shrugged. “What kind of friend would I be if I just told everyone your secrets? You’d probably never trust me again. Besides, I trust that you probably know at least  _ vaguely _ what you’re doing, you’re not a baby.” Webber blinked, then nodded slowly. “So you’re just rebuilding this thing? Do you know what it is?”

 

“Well, uh… No. I just think we should rebuild it. One of those feelings, you know?” She opened her mouth to speak, but they cut her off. “ _ Not _ the spider. Not right now, anyways.”  _ Because I’m smart enough to avoid rebuilding things that could probably kill us. Shush. _ Wendy tilted her head a bit, but didn’t seem too surprised anyway. It was like with the telltale heart, they just got a feeling that they couldn’t shake. This was what they were supposed to do, they were sure of it.

 

“Alright, I trust you,” she replied, looking at the skeleton. “...Do you need any help?”

 

“What? You’d actually help us? After I tried to sneak it past you?”

 

“Yeah? Webber, really. We’re friends, I’ll help you when you need it because you’d do the same for me. If you want help, I won’t say no. That’d be rude.” She looked around, blinking. “You need an alibi, right? Let’s catch a few butterflies, then they won’t question it.”

 

Webber smiled weakly, they probably should’ve known better than to try to hide something from Wendy. But even after everything, she was still willing to help out. She really was their best friend.

 

“Thank you, Wendy.”

 

“No problem, Webber.”

 

* * *

 

 

“...I don’t really know what happened after that. I can’t remember.”

 

“That’s not surprising. This place likes to miss with memories. Time’s messed up, too,” Wendy said, bending down to pick up a flower. “Nothing’s really normal that isn’t made by us. The animals, the structures, the plants, they’re all changed. It’s a hard adjustment.”

 

“I noticed,” Webber replied, frowning. “I almost got killed the night I got here. It was too dark to see what it was.” They touched their chest, that was probably the worst pain they’d been in  _ ever _ . Wendy nodded, rather nonplussed.

 

“That would be the Grue.” Webber blinked, watching as she grabbed another flower. “As long as you’re in the light, it can’t hurt you, but if you’re out in the dark, you’re as good as dead. The only surprising thing is that you lived through it.”

 

“I’m aware.” One more hit, and that would’ve been it. They were lucky those fireflies were there, otherwise they would’ve been a goner. Abigail floated along nearby, watching for danger more than she was listening to the conversation, but at least a bit of her attention was on them. 

 

“So do you remember anything else?” Wendy questioned, curious.

 

“Oh, yeah. I remember first waking up.” They blinked, limbs on their head twitching slightly. “There was a guy in a suit. He sounded like the one on the radio.” There was only a slight bitterness to their tone. After all, they’d pretty much come to terms with being trapped here. It wasn’t the worst trick. Wendy, on the other hand, suddenly seemed very irate.

 

“That would be ‘Maxwell’,” she replied, eyes narrow. Webber blinked worriedly, tilting their head.

 

“Um… Do you… Know him?”

 

“He’s my  _ uncle _ , and if I ever get my hands on him I’ll  _ throttle him myself _ .” Webber winced, spidery limbs twitching. “He’s an idiotic, headstrong, two-bit magician who  _ apparently _ messed with things that nobody ever should and paid for it. Not only that, but he dragged innocent people into his  _ mess _ . I want nothing to do with him, and I never will.” This had obviously caught Abi’s attention, she was staring at them.

 

“But he’s your uncle. Don’t you care about him, at least a little bit?” Webber asked, blinking.

 

“No. If he ever shows up here I will punch him in the face.” Webber’s spider limbs drooped a bit, frown on their face. “Aren’t  _ you _ mad at him? He tricked you into coming here, after all.”

 

“To tell the truth… Not really?” Webber blinked, looking away. “I mean, it wasn’t totally a trick. He told me it would be funner here, and it is. I couldn’t have found a better friend back at home,” they said, smiling over at Wendy. The girl’s expression softened, and she let out a sigh.

 

“I could say the same to you. Still, you’re too nice and forgiving to understand. I could probably steal all of your food for a week and you’d forgive me,” she snorted, picking another flower.

 

“I mean, you’re probably right. But you wouldn’t do that in the first place, so checkmate.” They nudged the girl amicably, smile still on their face. “You care about me way too much to do something like that.”

 

“Ha, you’ve got me there,” she chuckled, picking one last flower. They could see her hands moving, but couldn’t quite see what she was doing. Webber blinked as the girl placed a flower crown on their head. “I can tell when you aren’t doing well, by the way. You keep looking all shifty.” Well, she wasn’t wrong. They were keeping an eye on the shadow monsters in the corners of their eyes. It was making them a bit uneasy. “You really should watch your sanity, considering how often you’re in the caves. It’s dark in there.”

 

“Thank you,” Webber replied with a smile, fangs poking out of their mouth. They really didn't know what they'd do without her around. She grounded them. Besides, it was good to talk to someone who understood better than most what it was like to be an outsider. Just two creepy kids, being best friends and facing the world together. And sometimes adults just didn't understand. If they told Wilson they'd gotten tricked into coming here by the promise of an adventure, he wouldn't have gotten it. The same likely went for Willow and Wes. They didn't need scolding about this, they were already acutely aware of their mistakes, what they needed was understanding, and Wendy could give that.

 

They jumped as they heard a crash of distant thunder, limbs on their head twitching. And just like that, it started to rain. “Ugh. Whyyyy,” Webber grumbled, limbs on their head drooping. Wendy huffed, pulling an umbrella from her bag. At least they could both fit under it. Webber blinked, two-four-six-eight. “D’you hear something?” They asked, looking around.

 

“You know your hearing’s better than mine, Webber,” Wendy replied, though she was obviously on guard now. Abigail, too, was keeping an eye out. “Do you think it might be hounds?”

 

“No. It just sounds like…” They paused, tilting their head and looking extremely confused. It sounded like footsteps, but it had an unusual heaviness and a metallic squeaking. “...Uh… Hm. Sounds like something metal.”

 

“Maybe a clockwork?”

 

“A what?”

 

“Nevermind. Does it sound like an accordion?”

 

“...Wh… No.” Webber blinked again, staring at their friend in absolute confusion. She just shook her head, keeping an eye out. She probably knew what she was talking about, they trusted her. “Do you see anything, Abi?”

 

The ghost blinked, turning her attention to them. “ _ No, not yet. It could be nothing, but it’s best to be on guard, just in case. _ ” Webber nodded, looking back over to Wendy. They blinked twice, staring past Wendy’s head.

 

“Oh. Oh! It’s a robot!” They chirped. Wendy span around, staring at the thing. He was a yellow-brown color, looking… pretty much just like a minimalistic human made of metal and bolts. Sparks flew off of him intermittently as the rain hit him, making Webber a bit worried. Was he okay? He was also glowing a bit. How weird. “Hello!” They called, raising their hand to wave. Wendy opened her mouth, then closed it, clearly thinking better of what she was going to say. She did, however, put an arm out to protect Webber. The robot buzzed softly, and the spider kid’s head tilted to one side. They blinked, then stole the umbrella from Wendy’s hand, walking over to the robot and holding it above his head. “There you go. You looked hurt.” The robot blinked, water dripping from him onto the grass. Wendy was clearly tense, as was Abigail, the former with her weapon drawn and the latter’s eyes narrowed in a blatant threat.

 

“...THANK YOU.” The robot looked at them, mimicking their head tilt. Probably a bit confused. After all, it wasn’t every day you saw a cool spider hybrid kid out in the woods.

 

“Our name is Webber! What’s yours?” The robot’s eyes narrowed, and they heard Wendy shift.

 

“NAMES ARE FOR FLESHLINGS.” Webber stared at him in confusion, spider limbs twitching. The robot let out what was probably an irritated sigh. “YOU MAY CALL ME WX-78, SPIDER CHILD.”

 

“Okay, WX!” The robot seemed vaguely annoyed at his new nickname, but didn’t argue. “You should come with us, you can stay dry in our tents!” They felt Wendy’s gaze boring into the back of their head. They only had two tents, but surely they could make another! Maybe. Or Webber could just sleep outside. The robot’s eyes narrowed, studying them carefully, then nodded slowly. Webber smiled brightly, fangs poking out of their mouth, and then they started dragging the glowing robot back home, letting him hold the umbrella.

 

“Wilson’s gonna kill you,” Wendy commented quietly, eyeing the robot.

 

“Well, I couldn’t just let him rust out here,” they mumbled back, blinking. “Besides, one more person to help do stuff! That can’t be bad.” They heard abigail let out a sigh, closing her eyes in obvious annoyance.

 

“ _ You’re a good kid, Webber, but you’re very  _ naive.” Webber blinked, looking over at the ghost. Wendy sighed, rubbing her face.

 

“There’s nothing naive about wanting to see the good in everyone. I just think that everybody has a bit of good in them, no matter who they are.” Webber smiled, still relaxed.

 

“Not  _ everyone _ does,” Wendy replied a bit sharply, eyes narrow. Right. She was still mad about Maxwell, probably. Understandable. They wouldn’t argue, that would just be mean. Instead, they just nodded softly, though they kept a mildly worried eye on her.

 

Wilson probably wouldn’t be very thrilled about this new development, but he certainly wouldn’t kick WX out, nor would Willow or Wes. They wouldn’t want to upset Webber. They knew that, at least. Besides, a glowy robot they found in the woods couldn’t be a bad thing to bring back! He could help out! Nobody could complain if he pulled his own weight. The four made their way back to camp, where a mildly irritated Wilson waited for them. Or, three of them, at least.

 

Deep in the woods, the thing that had been built there pulsed a sickly green.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> -.-- --- ..- / .-- .. .-.. .-.. / .-. .. .--. / .- .--. .- .-. - / .- - / - .... . / ... . .- -- ...


	8. controlled falling

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> .... --- .-- / .-- . .----. ...- . / ..-. .- .-.. .-.. . -. .-.-.-

Click.

 

Webber stepped back, looking up at their work. It was done. The odd fossil creature was all assembled. “What do I do with you now?” They mumbled softly, frowning. They had to be honest, they thought something would happen when it was all done, but nothing did. It just sat there. They sighed, rubbing their head. At least Wendy was covering for them back at base, nobody would notice their absence.

 

They blinked, two-four-six-eight, then turned around and started heading back to base. They'd come back to check on it. At least it was actually  _ built _ now. They could focus on other things. 

  
  


Webber had been exploring a bit, wanting to be alone to think. Having alone time was nice sometimes. Besides, they didn't want to follow Wendy around all the time like a lost puppy. They kept an eye out for anything important looking, taking in the terrain and the resources around them all the same. They felt a pit in their stomach, but considering there wasn't anything around to cause it, they just brushed it off, adjusting their garland.

 

_ “You need to manage your sanity better,” Wendy said, placing yet another garland on their head. They blinked, frowning. “If it gets too low, those shadow creatures you see sometimes will attack you. You'll see, hear, and feel things that aren't real, so it's very important to keep up. You understand?” Webber nodded. _

 

Maybe it was just the effects of their sanity being low. They'd just have to be careful. Keep their eyes peeled.

 

Still, the foreboding feeling never left, even as they went back to camp.

 

* * *

 

 

“...gonna be fine, he's a grown man, he can take care of himself. Not to mention he has the materials to make a fire if he had to. No need to worry,” Willow was telling Wes. Webber overheard the chunk of conversation as they entered the camp. It was dusk now, soon to be night, and everyone was back at camp. Except for…

 

“There you are,” Wendy said, moving over to them. “I was starting to get worried.”

 

“Where's Mr. Higgsbury?” Wendy winced slightly at the question. 

 

“...We aren't sure. But we know he hasn't died, otherwise he'd come back here as a ghost. Maybe he just got carried away exploring.” She shrugged. “Nothing to really panic about. He'll probably come right back in the morning.” Webber nodded slowly, still obviously worried. Not panicking was easier said than done. After all, Wilson was somewhat of a father figure to them now. But that meant they had to trust him, he wasn’t a kid.

 

Still, sleeping was hard that night.

  
  


He hadn’t come back yet. Why hadn’t he come back? Not even a ghost had returned, so surely he was still alive somewhere. WX had even gone out scanning for him, but he came back with bad news.

 

“NEGATIVE. NO READINGS OF THE BIGHEAD FLESHLING ANYWHERE,” he’d said, much to the disappointment and fright of the group. It wasn’t like Wilson to just vanish without a trace like this. It certainly wasn’t helping Webber’s current sanity problems. Every now and then when they were exploring, they’d just have to  **go back, backtrack, make sure they didn’t miss anything** , they were so distracted and anxious. But despite all of this, they couldn’t take a break. Without Wilson, things were going to be harder than ever, and nobody knew when he would come back.

 

Webber was out, mining a few of the gold-veined rocks. They needed the material, and Webber needed to be alone. That is, they thought they did, until their head started throbbing. The spider hybrid huffed, rubbing their forehead with a quiet whine. They had to work. They attempted to just keep working, but the pain got too much, shadow monsters forming in the corner of their vision. They heard it scuttling closer, but couldn’t bring themselves to move.

 

Wendy hit it with a tentacle spike, huffing. “Come on, bud, get up. We should get back to camp before things get worse.” Abigail stood between them and the shadow creatures, ready to defend the two kids. Wendy helped them up, letting them lean on her shoulder so they wouldn’t stumble. They thought to argue for a moment, but then chose not to, just trying to get there without passing out from the pain. Abigail kept the creatures off of them, letting them arrive safely at base. Wendy sat Webber down, rooting in the ice chest for a moment before putting a garland on the spider hybrid’s head. After a few moments, the headache subsided.

 

“I don’t want you to go out alone right now, okay? Your sanity gets low very fast.” Webber sighed and nodded in response, looking at the ground. “I’m not angry. I’m just worried about you,” Wendy clarified. “Those shadow monsters can do some serious damage if you’re not careful. I don’t want you being on your own if that happens again.” Another nod, they couldn’t really argue. It was for the best. Their emotional state hadn’t been the best since Wilson vanished. Nobody could blame them, though, this was hard on everyone. He was probably the backbone of the entire group, he was the smartest, and probably most important was that he was the only one who could efficiently work the science machines. Winter was well on its way, this was the absolute worst time for  _ anyone _ to go missing, let alone Wilson.

 

They’d just have to manage without him for a while.

 

* * *

 

 

Webber stared up at the  **f** ossils they’d assembled together,  **u** nhappy look on th **e** ir face. They sighed, rubbing their eyes and stepping back a bit. “You really don’t do anything, do you? I just put you together for no good reason.”  _ I to _ **_l_ ** _ d you not to, but do you listen to me? No. _ “ **W** ell, I’m  _ sorry _ , jeez. Last time I got that f **e** eling we made the he **a** rt, so I just thought… I just thought it could be something important,” they reasoned, whining quietly. “But it just sits there, doing nothing.” E **v** en though they’d gotten that feeling, it se **e** med like it was w **r** ong. “Why can’t you do something useful? Like finding Mr. Higgsbury? Or helping us get supplies?”  _ Because you just assumed it would’ve been helpful. You, Wendy, and Abigail are still the only ones who even know about this thing. You’re lucky it didn’t revive or something. _

 

“I guess you were right,” they muttered, frowning. “I just wish you weren’t. No offense.”  **A** fter all, it really didn’t do any **t** hing, othe **r** than look cool, they guessed. At least  **i** t was good at doing that. Maybe this st **u** pid thing was the cause of Wilson’s disappearance. They hoped it wasn’t, that would  **m** ean it was Webber’s fault, and they didn’t want that.

 

Maybe it needed something before it would work. That was always a possibility. They sighed quietly, then turned around and walked back toward camp.

 

* * *

 

 

It had been almost a week since Wilson had disappeared.

 

Things were still going decently, other than the emotional strain on everyone involved. Webber was taking it extra hard, continuously trying to make sense of why Wilson, their friend and father figure, would just up and seemingly abandon everyone when they needed him. They kept trying to find someone or something to put the blame on, mostly just ending up a self loathing mess. Everything was going so well, why did this have to happen? Wilson would’ve come back if he’d died, but he never arrived. So where was he?

 

They hoped he’d turn up soon. Worry was eating them up inside. They at least hoped he was safe, wherever he was. They were constantly keeping an eye out for any signs of him, or even signs of anything that could've dragged him off, but they didn't find anything. 

 

Still, they were preparing for winter, with Willow taking over most of the leadership duties. Wes had tried on multiple occasions to raise morale, but it was hard when everyone was so down in the dumps. Still, Webber appreciated it. He was trying his best, after all. Even though they disliked it, Webber had taken to collecting materials from spiders. Meat and silk and glands were all necessary to live, and they'd get it for their group no matter what. Even if it meant stepping pretty far out of their comfort zone. At least they didn’t have to kill anything, they just caused mini-spider wars and wreaked a little bit of havoc on the poor nests. They’d also started making winter gear, vests and hats and scarves, just to ensure that everyone would keep warm. Sure, they had thermal stones, but those alone weren’t enough to keep out the winter chill. Weaving was a nice distraction, anyways, since they didn’t really have to think much while doing it.

 

Wendy had been keeping tabs on them all the while, making sure she knew where they were going to be at all times and checking up on them frequently. On one hand, they weren’t a baby, they didn’t really need supervision, but on the other, they didn’t really mind it. After all, they knew why she was so concerned. They would’ve taken a nasty hit if she hadn’t shown up to fend off the shadows. She also tended to stock the spider hybrid with garlands, which they didn’t mind one bit. It calmed them down, if only a little bit, and that was very needed right now with how stressed out they were.

 

Not much happened for around a week after Wilson’s disappearance. Webber and Wendy were catching butterflies, the portal they’d come through well in sight. A more relaxing task than usual, but important nonetheless, due to the healing capabilities of butterfly wings. Plus the spider liked them.

 

All was quiet for a while, and then the portal flashed to life. Wendy put herself almost instantly between Webber and the portal, ready to take action, pulling her tentacle spike out of her bag. Webber blinked, two-four-six-eight, eyeing the portal. Someone was tossed out like normal, falling to the ground and rubbing his head.

 

They knew that face.

 

“You?”

 

The one who trapped them here. Wendy’s eyes narrowed, gripping her weapon tighter.

 

“ _ You _ ,” she said angrily, practically a growl. Or as close as a human kid could get to one.

 

Why now? Why when Wilson was missing? Why  _ now _ ?

 

Webber couldn’t help but hiss instinctively, raising their spidery limbs in a threat. Looking more like a  [ monster ](https://youtu.be/p6FnUjT3OJo) than usual right now.

 

Maxwell was here.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ... . . / .... --- .-- / .. - .----. ... / -.-. .... .- -. --. . -..


	9. spider to a flame

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Even the most cheerful people have their moments.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> BIG WARNING this chapter for attempted murder, themes of depression and family death, and mild suicidal ideation
> 
> if you don't want to see these topics, the attempted murder is after the second break and the others are after the third for the most part

“Why are you here, William,” Wendy questioned, clearly irritated. She kept herself between them and Maxwell, protecting the spider hybrid and at least trying to look threatening to the man. He still seemed pretty dazed as it was. Webber blinked, two-four-six-eight. 

 

“Wendy, he looks kinda out of it,” Webber commented, putting a clawed hand on her shoulder. She huffed, refusing to lower her weapon for obvious reasons. After all, he trapped all of them here, who knew what else he could do? “Give him a minute. It's two against one if he tries to hurt us.” Wendy only nodded, still watching the magician carefully. He sat up, rubbing his head, and Webber kept a hand on Wendy to make sure she wouldn't smack him upside the head.

 

“Oh, it's you,” he said simply, sounding rather uninterested. He stood up, dusting off his suit and fixing the rose pinned to it. “I'm not in the mood for games, so I think I'll take my leave.”

 

“No, you  _ won't _ ,” Wendy replied sharply, pointing her weapon at him. “Funny that you assume we'd let you just run off wherever. You've got some explaining to do, Maxwell.” The man glared at her with utter contempt, and Webber squinted at him.

 

“I think I can handle two  _ children _ , as odd as you both are, but I don't have time to play. Ta.” Shadows formed around his feet, and Webber hissed in frustration, fully expecting him to vanish into thin air. But instead, the shadow magic fizzled out and vanished. Maxwell looked utterly baffled, as confused as Webber did. Wendy, though surprised, just stepped forward, prodding him in the back with her tentacle spike.

 

“Nice try, your disappearing act didn't quite work, now  _ move. _ ” He opened his mouth, presumably going to argue, but seeing Webber standing at the ready with their spike made him change his mind.

 

“ _ Fine _ ,” he replied simply, crossing his arms. Wendy and Webber escorted him carefully to base, though Webber was mostly thinking about other things.

 

_ Why didn't he just teleport away? _

 

* * *

 

 

They were now seated in camp, sky darkening. Maxwell was nearby, everyone had an eye on him in case he tried to pull anything funny. Still, Webber thought he looked kinda lonely. And maybe hungry. Everyone had already tried asking him questions, other than Webber, but nobody got a straight answer. They could tell Willow was still angry about it, flicking her lighter open and shut repeatedly. Wendy, too, though she barely showed it.

 

Webber blinked, getting up and moving over. They sat down next to Maxwell, smile on their face. “Hi!” The magician seemed pretty irritated at their presence.

 

“Oh, are they sending in the kid to interrogate me now?” He questioned, looking annoyed. Webber blinked again, shaking their head.

 

“No, I just thought you looked kinda lonely.” Everyone was watching like a hawk now, clearly not trusting Maxwell around one of their most innocent, naive survivors. He stared at them for a moment, then sighed in annoyance. “We're Webber!” They smiled brightly, limbs on their head twitching.

 

“...Maxwell.” They knew that, but they wouldn't say it.

 

“Nice to meet you, Mr. Maxwell! Oh, I brought you some food, too.” They passed him a plate of meatballs, which he stared at suspiciously for a few moments before eating. Webber blinked, looking away. They'd been thinking about what had happened. Before, he would've just vanished to avoid the confrontation, but he wouldn't. Or… couldn't. That was what it seemed like. He'd tried and failed. Something had changed, but they were still trying to put the pieces together. 

 

“Mr. Maxwell?” They paused as the man looked at them, thinking for a moment. Word it carefully, or he wouldn't give a straight answer. “...Why didn't you teleport away?” Maxwell huffed, immediately annoyed again.

 

“I don't know. Why do you think, kid?”

 

Webber thought carefully about their answer. This felt like a test in school. For English class. They mulled it over for a few moments, then spoke up. “I think it's because you couldn't. You tried, but it didn't work. You can't teleport anymore. Or maybe… you can't use magic at all anymore?” Maxwell seemed vaguely impressed, raising a brow.

 

“There's your answer. Are you done?” Webber paused again, thinking. It couldn't be a coincidence. There was no way. Wilson vanishes without a trace, and a week later, Maxwell shows up. Abilities gone and powerless. But still no sign of Wilson.

 

“...Are you…” They swallowed, trying to keep calm. “...You… You know what happened to Mr. Higgsbury, don't you?” Maxwell seemed a bit surprised, blinking twice. Webber felt a sick feeling bubbling up. “It can't be a coincidence. He vanishes, and then you show up, out of the blue. It can't be a  _ coincidence _ that you just popped up out of nowhere.”

 

Maxwell paused for a moment. Everyone's eyes were on them. “...No, it's not a coincidence.” Webber froze, they were right.

 

“ _ What happened to him. _ ” It was almost a hiss. Their limbs raised threateningly, tears welling up in their eyes. Maxwell hesitated, then finally, he gave a straight answer.

 

“Well, I don't know for sure. Either he died, or he’s trapped being the ruler of the Constant for eternity.”

 

Webber was seeing  _ red _ .

 

They practically tackled him to the ground, force and surprise of the movement enough to make up for their lighter weight. Venom dripped from their fangs and tears flowed down their face, blurring their vision almost to the point of being unmanageable. They didn't need to see very well, though, just needed to see well enough to know where to  _ bite _ . Venom would do most of the work, most likely. Just one bite.

 

“I'll  _ kill you _ ,” they hissed, eyes wide and expression absolutely furious. They felt attempted shadow magic fizzle out against them. No, he wasn't getting out of this. They'd kill him. He deserved it. It was what he deserved. They thought he looked afraid, though it was hard to tell through the tears.

 

Suddenly, they were lifted from the ground, and they let out an instinctive hiss, twisting around to see who had picked them up. Willow looked at them worriedly, holding them close to her despite their obvious anger. The rage slowly died, replaced instead with absolute  _ despair _ . They sniffed, then started sobbing, burying their face in Willow’s shoulder. Wilson was either dead or trapped forever. Wilson was  _ gone _ .

 

Everything was quiet in the clearing that night.

 

* * *

 

 

Things since then had been looking rather bleak.

 

A funeral hadn't been held. Nobody's morale could take it, especially not Webber. Holding a ceremony meant they were accepting that Wilson was really not coming back, and they couldn't handle that. They'd lose it.

 

Webber had only gotten worse since everyone had found out the truth. They were irritable, constantly depressed, and very easy to set off into a sobbing fit. Not even Wendy could manage to handle their depression half the time, though she still tried. Her usual bluntness, which had been a comfort to Webber before, was now more likely to send them into another depressive episode. They were more fragile than ever, but also much more prickly.

 

The others had only started consciously keeping apart Webber and Maxwell after another incident, as even though it was more mild than the last, nobody really wanted Webber to try making good on their threats. “Try to talk to me again and I'll bite you” was never a good thing to hear from anyone, let alone someone with venom, so they'd been trying to keep the two as far apart as physically possible. Webber was never on watch duty alone anymore for worry that they'd try to kill Maxwell in his sleep or something.

 

Sanity issues had only gotten worse and worse, garlands barely helping the drain now. Due to this fragility, someone had to be with them at all times, just to make sure they didn't get eaten alive by shadow creatures because they were too busy sobbing in a corner. 

 

Still, nobody really blamed them for their current faults. Wilson was important to them, and they needed time to grieve. Everyone worked extra hard to make up for them. And for Wendy, who was the one who stuck with them most often to keep them safe. She just gave them quiet companionship, unless they started a conversation.

 

The pair were in a flower field, Wendy putting together another garland in an attempt to slow the drain of Webber's sanity. Besides, she just didn't want them getting cabin fever from being in camp all the time. Webber watched her putting the flowers together and tying them, frown on their face.

 

“Wendy?”

 

“Mhm?” She turned her attention to them.

 

They paused, thinking a moment, frown deepening. “...Why do you all keep me around?” They'd been nothing but a drain on resources and a constant annoyance since the incident. Why keep them alive? What was the point?

 

Wendy gave them a look of absolute disbelief. “Because you're practically family? Webber, you'd better not try to do anything you'll regret.” The spider hybrid looked away, keeping their composure at least vaguely.

 

“But I use up resources. I can't pull my own weight anymore. I'm taking up all your time now because you're too busy worrying for me to do anything else.” They hugged their knees to their chest, refusing to meet her gaze. “I'm not useful. You don't need me.”

 

“Yes, we do,” Wendy replied sharply, scooting to sit in front of them. “Yes, we're worried about you, but that's because we  _ care _ about you. We want you to be okay. Don't think that way, alright?” Webber sniffled, hiding their face.

 

“Why do you  _ care _ ? I'm nothing special. I'm just a stupid naive kid who doesn't do anything important. You shouldn't have to deal with me all the time.” 

 

Wendy wrapped her arms around them, sighing. “Stop acting like you're some kind of burden,” she mumbled, frowning. “You're my best friend, you know that? You're practically like a sibling. You're not useless or a waste. Don't think like that.” Webber hiccuped, uncurling and instead hugging onto Wendy tightly. 

 

“Everyone else got over it, so why can't I?” They choked out, tears soaking the fur on their face. “ _ Why can't I? _ ” Wendy was silent, just letting them cry into her shirt. It did help, crying it all out.

 

“I'm going to be honest,” she started, voice soft and gentle. “We didn't. None of us are over it, some of us just cope better than others. You're one of the most sensitive people here, and that isn't a bad thing. You're a sweet kid, and you care about nearly everyone probably more than you even care about yourself. I really wish you  _ would _ think about yourself sometimes instead of focusing on everyone else. But just know that I care about you. We all do. Keep that in mind, okay?”

 

“...Thank you, Wendy…”

 

“Anytime.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **-.-- --- ..- / .-- .. .-.. .-.. / -. --- - / ..-. .- .-.. - . .-. --..-- / -- --- -. ... - . .-. / -.-. .... .. .-.. -.. .-.-.-**


	10. not having much fun

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everyone else has accepted that Wilson is gone, either dead or lost forever. 
> 
> Webber, however, hasn't, and they've found something that finally gave them the resolve they needed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi guys!
> 
> first thing's first, i want to thank everyone for the interest you've shown! 200 hits is a goal i didn't really expect to reach! i want to do something in exchange!
> 
> for starters, this chapter's an extra long one. i was thinking of splitting it halfway, but i decided to just post it all in one! 
> 
> for another thing, i was wondering if you all would appreciate being able to directly contact webber via tumblr asks! i have a url snagged and ready for use, and i can totally link it here and accept ic asks! i'm not entirely sure if i'll have it affect the story in any major way, but i'm definitely not opposed to you all talking to them! it'll basically just act like webber found a phone and got a blog lol (edit: this is now up! it's at creepiestcrawlie on tumblr) 
> 
> again, thank you all for your support, you can also find me on my [personal tumblr](https://stxticspxcelover.tumblr.com/)! i also accept asks abt spiderfriend there! i love all of you! <3

It had been a few days.

 

Webber, for one, wasn’t ready to give up.

 

They were seated behind a tent, packing a backpack full of needed supplies, a log suit, a tentacle spike, some wood and food and anything else they thought they’d need. Quietly, they lifted the bag, hauling it up onto their shoulders. They hadn’t told anyone where they were going, not even Wendy or Willow, in part because they really had no idea. Their only real objective was to find Wilson, no matter what it took. They refused to come home until they did.

 

They’d asked Maxwell where he would be, but he only gave vague half-answers. Figures.

 

So they’d just have to find him themselves. They didn’t need Maxwell’s help anyways, he could kick the bucket for all they cared. They just needed to find Wilson.

 

So, they set off into the woods, keeping an eye out for anything that might hint toward where they needed to go.

 

They’d find him. They had to.

 

* * *

 

 

It didn’t take too long before Webber found something of interest, an odd looking portal that opened up when they got close. It looked a little bit too much like _a certain someone’s_ face for their liking. Still, this had to be it, right? They stepped up to it, ignoring the dark flowers on the ground and instead just going to the door. They weren’t afraid. They had to do this, for Wilson.

 

“Playtime’s over,” they muttered, stepping into the portal.

 

They still weren’t used to the extreme vertigo and nausea that came from traveling through these things, but thankfully, they were on the other side quickly. They let out a dazed grunt, opening their eyes and looking around. It just looked like a normal area, but… They blinked, two-four-six-eight, what was that?

 

In front of them was some sort of tool, placed on the ground. The spider hybrid stood up, dusted off, and moved to the thing, picking it up. Some sort of sensor, maybe? They put it in their bag, which they quickly realized was woefully empty save for a fraction of what they’d brought. They sighed, taking another look around before picking a direction and starting to walk. Maybe they could find something useful. What they found was pretty much the opposite, they discovered that the shore was very close. Some kind of smaller island? Oh well, they’d have to find out what to do here to get to Wilson. They walked the perimeter, finding a couple wormholes. Maybe they lead somewhere? Either way, they wouldn’t jump yet. They’d instead gather a few things. They picked up whatever grass and twigs and flint they saw, putting together an axe and working on chopping trees. By dusk, they had a good amount of resources to work with. So, through the first wormhole they went.

 

It didn’t take long to figure out the gimmick. This place had a bunch of smaller islands, only accessible by wormhole. Each island had its own resources and differing enemies, each having different biomes. The divining rod they’d taken was leading them to something, they were sure of it, but it didn’t seem quite _normal_. Still, they went on, collecting and conserving as much as they could. After all, they didn’t know for sure what else was waiting for them.

 

It took some jumps to get to where the divining rod was actually reacting, rather strongly, at that. They had a mild headache from all of the wormholes, but nothing they couldn’t handle. They’d fight if they really had to. Still, they had a feeling they were getting close.

They soon found what they were looking for. It was a flat, octagonal object, made of wood with dark red runes drawn on it. Webber considered it for a few moments, noting a slot in the center. A keyhole? They blinked, then raised their divining rod, clicking it into place. The thing split apart, top peeling back to reveal another portal.

 

Webber hesitated, then narrowed their eyes. They had to keep going.

 

They jumped through.

 

* * *

 

 

They were tossed out once more, though managed to roll to avoid harm. They stood up, looking around. It was snowing, but there was a chest nearby with a bit of winter gear. A thermal stone, vest, and hat. Pretty generous, really. They put the gear on, started a fire to warm up and get their thermal stone heated up. They kept an eye out, blinking. The spider hybrid pulled out their divining rod, pointing it around to see which way to head. Once they found their direction, they started walking.

 

“I’ll find you, Mr. Higgs,” Webber muttered, trudging through the snow. This wouldn’t stop them. They held the thermal stone close to their chest, breathing deeply.

 

They soon came upon an obstacle, tall black obelisks that towered over them pretty dramatically. They looked up, narrowed their eyes in annoyance, and cracked their knuckles. They leaped up, digging their claws into the material, carefully climbing up. Once they got to the top, they looked down, then dropped off, carefully rolling to avoid harm. Wes had taught them that skill, which was coming in _very_ handy now. They were glad one of them was so acrobatic. There was another set of obelisks, but they were lowered, so Webber just stepped over them with ease. Not so hard.

 

Webber sighed, building another fire and deciding to rest. Night would fall soon. They made a straw roll for the night and slept through it.

 

When they woke up, there were a few roses nearby, though they were now covered in snow. They didn’t pay it much mind.

 

They got moving again, carefully conserving their food. After all, who knew what there’d be to eat in this chill? The spider hybrid kept on their feet, bundled in their winter gear. They wouldn’t want to get sick, but they have to keep going, for Wilson. They followed where the divining rod led them, stopping only to grab a few resources. It didn’t take them long to find another one of the wooden things, and without much hesitation, they put the end of their divining rod in the slot. Yet again, it opened, and they hopped in.

 

* * *

 

 

When they got into the next area, they quickly realized it was raining. But to their surprise, there was an umbrella on the ground.

 

They were getting a bit suspicious. This was all too easy, too _convenient_. Still, they couldn’t pass up the extra protection, so they picked it up and held it over their head. They took out their divining rod, checking which way to go, and started walking, grabbing food on the way. They moved fast, wanting to get out of here as soon as they could.

 

This didn’t seem as complicated or bad as the others, more or less normal, except they noticed drastic changes of temperature, fast days, and rapid changes in weather. At least it was just a straight shot through. They were a little worried about everything, what if Wilson wasn’t even here? What if they got stuck or died? They blinked, regaining focus. They jumped as they heard a clap of thunder, followed by a lightning strike into… a lightning rod? Webber’s eyes widened.  
  
They rushed to the structure, looking around. They spotted just what they thought they would, a fire pit, and more importantly, a science machine.

 

Wilson had been here. They were sure of it now.

 

They kept moving, resolve steeled. They had something to fight for. That was what they’d been needing for weeks now, and they’d finally gotten it.

 

After a while, they found the wooden thing, activated it, and hopped through.

 

* * *

 

 

They landed in a marsh, tucking and rolling yet again to avoid damage. It was a bit sloppy, they ended up flopped on their stomach, but they were unharmed nonetheless. They stood up and dusted off, looking around. No rain, at least, so they put their umbrella away and pulled out their divining rod. They just had to find the thing. They collected a few resources and some food, then set off in the direction the divining rod led them.

 

This one was easier than the rest, though it likely wouldn’t be for anyone other than them. The way was blocked by tier threes, towering far above them. Though it would be a nightmare for anyone else, and likely _was_ , they were able to cross easily, no muss no fuss. They found the wooden thing, steeled themselves, and activated it, hopping through quickly. They didn’t want to linger for longer than they had to.

 

* * *

 

 

They ended up in pitch darkness. They gasped, backing up, and hit a sort of light. Sorta like a lamp. They blinked, two-four-six-eight, and looked around. They couldn’t see their hand in front of their face out there, but then they spotted on the ground something to help. A miner’s hat and a bug net. They blinked again, picking the items up and placing the hat on their head. They were still wary, but this place didn’t seem too bad. They followed the direction of their divining rod, keeping an eye out and minding their headache. They also caught a few fireflies on the way, refueling their hat when they needed to.

 

They had to climb up another obelisk, which was tiring, but not unreasonable. It could be worse. They hurried along, spotting what they needed. It was surrounded by fireflies, lighting it up pretty nicely. This felt like an ending.

 

They only hoped it would be.

 

They stuck the divining rod into the slot, letting the portal open.

 

They took a deep breath, then stepped in.

 

* * *

 

 

The first thing they probably noticed was the music. Was that… ragtime? The second thing was the carpeted flooring. Huh. It was still pretty dark, but those strange lights were still here. Webber stood up, looking around before heading toward the source of the music. They paused, finding a few chests and pretty much raiding them for anything useful before continuing on.

 

It didn’t take long to find the source, an old gramophone. But more importantly…

 

“Mr. Higgs!” They cried, running and practically throwing themselves at the man. He seemed relieved to see them, though still vaguely stressed and worried. “You didn’t come back, and Maxwell did, and we all thought you were dead!” He narrowed his eyes at the mention of Maxwell, but then just breathed and gave them a tired smile.

 

“No, I’m still kicking. You all know I’m too stubborn to go down that easy.” Webber giggled weakly in response, wiping tears from their eyes. “Still, I would’ve preferred you stayed with everyone else. How long have I been gone?”

 

“Um… About a month?” Wilson jolted slightly, looking concerned.

 

“I didn’t realize it’d been _that_ long. Is everyone still okay? Nothing bad happening?”

 

“Yes and no, we’re all fine. Maxwell’s with everyone else.” They screwed up their face. Wilson might’ve been alive, but they were still very _very_ angry with the magician. When they got back they’d get Willow to lift them up so they could smack him in the head. “Why are we still here? Let’s head home!” Wilson frowned at that, sighing.

 

“I can’t, unfortunately. I’m kind of… Stuck,” he said, glancing down at his hands. For the first time, Webber noticed the shadows around his wrists confining him to the chair. They frowned, looking rather crestfallen.

 

“Well… How do I get you out?”

 

“Can’t. If you get me out, it’ll trap you instead.” There was a strong sinking feeling in their chest. Despite coming all the way here, they still couldn’t free Wilson? It was all for nothing?

 

“But… No, there _has_ to be a way. I’ll find something, just--”

 

“Webber, there’s _no way_ to get me out without you getting stuck instead. Don’t try, just…” They both went silent, listening.

 

 _Click, click, click, click_.

 

“What is _that_?” Wilson asked, blinking twice.

 

“High heels on tile.” The scientist looked at them oddly, clearly wondering why they knew that sound in specific. “Mama used to wear high heels around the house a lot, and it sounded like that in the kitchen.” He nodded silently, staring into the darkness. Webber stood, ready to defend their father figure against whatever was about to step out of the dark.

 

To their surprise, it was a normal person who stepped out. Vaguely normal, anyways. Her hair moved a bit oddly, as did the bottom of her dress, but, well, they were a _spider-kid hybrid_ , so whatever, really. Still, they watched her closely, wary despite her friendly smile.

 

“Hello there!” She said sweetly, hands clasped in front of her. “You must be Wilson.”

 

“Er… Yes,” Wilson replied, clearly thrown off both by her appearance and by Webber’s initial distrust of her. They didn’t know why they were so wary, but she had a familiar presence, and they didn’t like it much. Where did they know her from? “Who are you?”

 

“My name is Charlie, dear,” she replied, still smiling. Webber blinked, two-four-six-eight. They’d heard that name before, but from who? Ugh, they probably heard it while they were having a depressive fit. Oh well. “You seem a bit stuck.”

 

“Oh, yes. Do you think there’s anything you could do about that?” Wilson questioned. Webber almost argued, then realized. Charlie wasn’t normal, it was clear now, she had the same feeling as most of the other things in the Constant. A bit different, she still felt like a human, or at least someone who _used_ to be human, but still similar. Maybe she could do something Webber couldn’t.

 

“Well, let’s see.” She walked over, carefully stepping around Webber like it was nothing. They let out a soft huff, though stayed out of the way. Charlie took a look at the shadows binding Wilson, then gave them a light tap with a finger. The shadows pulled back, freeing him.

 

“Oh, well, that was simple.” Wilson raised an eyebrow, standing up. As relieved as they were, Webber’s eyes were on Charlie. Her hair was moving like a bonfire now, eyes closed briefly before reopening, black with white pupils. One hand extended into a ghostly form, like the shadow hands that tried to snuff out their fires every night. Two black marks appeared under each eye, her dress lengthened and moved more erratically.

 

“Mr Higgsbury, watch out!” They called, rushing toward him. They were knocked back by shadows, Charlie grabbing Wilson with her now ghostly hand. She raised him up, then started _shocking_ him. Webber hissed loudly, scratching at the shadows with their claws. As soon as they could get up, they moved, tackling Charlie with their full weight. It wasn’t really effective, she hardly stumbled. They opened their mouth wide, preparing to bite down on her arm, but then they were knocked off onto the floor. They screeched in terror as the floor never hit, instead being tossed into a portal. They would’ve cried had they not seen Wilson falling soon after. Thank goodne--

 

As soon as they hit the ground, they were thoroughly knocked out.

 

* * *

 

 

When they woke up, they were on a straw roll, bandages wrapped carefully around their head. It covered a few of their smaller eyes, which was vaguely offputting after being used to it for so long, but they didn’t mind all that much. They were alive, at least. That mattered the most. They quickly noticed Wendy sitting next to their bed, and she quickly noticed they were awake. They sat up, blinking two-four-six-eight. She moved over slightly, then hugged them, breathing deeply.

 

“I’m glad you’re okay,” she mumbled, sighing. Webber smiled, hugging her back.

 

“Is Wilson--”

 

“Yes, he’s alright. You did it. You brought him back.” Webber sniffled, burying their face in Wendy’s shoulder.

 

They were happy to be home with their _whole_ family.


	11. a new reign

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The group finds that there are a few new things in the not-so-Constant.
> 
> It seems, despite Wilson's return, there is no normalcy to speak of.

“That’s… New.”

 

Webber tilted their head at the odd creature. It was like some sort of gecko, but it was all  _ planty _ . They’d never seen those before, nor had the others mentioned something like that. They stepped a bit closer, and it made a sort of squeaking sound, shedding a healthy clump of cut grass. They paused, blinking at it two-four-six-eight, then looked around at the population of the lizards. There were at least ten, maybe twenty. A grin grew on their face, they had an idea.

 

“Drop ‘em!” They cried, chasing the lizards around. Just as they suspected, they all shed a clump of grass and ran away, letting Webber collect it all without any real fuss. Well, wherever they’d come from, they seemed useful!

 

* * *

 

“We haven’t seen those before,” Webber commented, gesturing to a tall plant with berries hanging down from it. Wendy gave it an odd look, head tilted slightly.

 

“...Me neither,” she replied, nudging it with her spear. The berries dropped off onto the ground, and Webber picked a few up. Before Wendy could even say anything, they popped the berries in their mouth, blinking.

 

“Juicy,” they said, smiling.

 

“Those could’ve been poisonous or something, you know.” Webber gave her a sideways look, spidery limbs twitching. “...Right. Point taken,” she said, sighing. “Taste off or anything?”

 

“Hmm. Nope!” They smiled. “Doesn’t taste gross or anything.” Webber was a good litmus test for these things, they could tell if something was poisonous or not by taste, without any of the negative effects. “They’re just really juicy berries. Tasty.” They gathered up the rest of the berries, looking back at Wendy.

 

“Huh. Well, I guess those are just… Here. Now.” She shrugged helplessly. “Try to keep one of those on you, maybe one of the others has seen them before.” Webber nodded in response, smile on their face as they munched on another berry.

 

* * *

 

 

“Have you seen that kind of tree before, Ms. Willow?” Webber asked, pointing to a tree that seemed thinner and twiggier than the others. “I mean, you burn a lot of trees, so I thought you might know.” Willow snorted softly in response, looking at the tree.

 

“Can’t say I have, Webber,” she replied, flicking her lighter. Open, shut, open, shut. “It’ll burn just as well, though.” Webber blinked, two-four-six-eight, pointing to another tree.

 

“What about those ones?”

 

The trees they were pointing to were completely encased in rock. Willow did a double-take, staring at the rocky trees. Webber blinked again, looking up at her in concern. “...Those were normal before,” she commented, clear worry in her expression. “I wonder what happened. We’ll have to tell Wilson later.” Webber nodded, frowning. Hopefully the grove they planted wouldn’t get messed up. “Come on, we still need wood before nightfall, kiddo,” she said, heading off into the forest. Webber nodded quickly, following her closely.

* * *

 

 

“I AM EXPONENTIALLY MORE INTELLIGENT THAN YOU,” WX commented, facing away from Webber in a way that they couldn’t tell exactly what they were talking to. The spider hybrid blinked, trying to lean around to look at whatever the robot had.

 

“Whatcha doin, WX?” They asked, blinking two-fo ur-six-eight. “Caught something?” The robot turned to look at them.

 

“I CAUGHT A FEATHERED FLESHLING,” they replied, finally letting Webber see the thing. It had bright yellow feathers, nothing they’d seen on any birds here before. Webber gave it an odd look, head tilted.

 

“I can’t say I’ve seen those before,” they commented, staring at it. “Do you know what kinda bird it is?”

 

“MY SCANNERS SAY IT IS A CANARY.”

 

“Okay, thank you, WX.” They’d have to mention it to Wilson later.

 

* * *

 

 

“How’s it going, Mr. Wes?” Webber called, lifting rocks off of the ground and into their backpack. The mime looked over at them, showing a quick thumbs up and a smile. The two were on mining duty today, and since the rocky biome was further away, they settled for the odd one. It was sort of just a scattering of smaller biomes, but it had some rocks, and it had some gold, so it was useful. There was also a graveyard, but they’d rather not disturb the dead if they didn’t have to.

 

Their spidery limbs twitched, eyes opening wide and looking around. What was that sound? They looked around a bit more, not noticing the rapidly darkening shadow over them. Thankfully, Wes did, and he sprinted over, scooping Webber up and diving out of the way. A meteor crashed right into the spot they’d been standing, half-burying itself in the ground. Rocks crashed down on top of them, but Wes shielded the kid and his own head, so there was only a small bit of damage.

 

“Are you okay, Mr. Wes?” Webber asked, eyes wide and worried. The mime nodded and smiled, obviously not too hurt. The two stood up, dusting off. Webber looked at the rock curiously, walking over and busting it open with their pickaxe. They looked at the odd blue rock they’d gotten from it, head tilted. “We should go home. Wilson should see this,” they said, holding it up. Wes nodded, and they headed home together.

 

* * *

 

 

“So where did you see them, Webber?” Wilson asked, rubbing his forehead. With all the new discoveries everyone had been making, he’d been complaining that he was going to get gray hairs at the not-so-ripe age of thirty. Still, he was the one everyone went to with the new discoveries and worries and ideas, and he knew that full well. He was probably the smartest of them all when it came to that kind of thing.

 

“Right this way, Mr. Higgs,” Webber replied, hurrying along. They broke through a copse of trees, seeing the things Webber had mentioned. They looked kind of like deer, with weird jaws and no eyes to speak of. They acknowledged the pair, but didn’t run or attack. “See?”

 

“Ugh, another new thing, of course.” He rubbed his temples. “What  _ are _ these things?”

 

“I have…” Webber paused, wide grin growing on their face. “... _ No eye-deer _ .” Wilson stared at them, then snorted.

 

“You know, I have nobody but myself to blame for that one. Kinda walked into it.”

 

“Oh, you absolutely did.”

 

“Well, anyways,” he started, looking at the animals again. “They aren’t hostile, so it’s not too big of a concern. We can mess with them later. For now, let’s just head home and get some rest, you’ve been very active.” Wilson gave the spider child a pat on the head, which made them giggle.

 

“Okay, Mr. Higgs!” They chirped, bright smile on their face as they followed him home.

 

* * *

 

 

Maxwell was probably the most distressed by the odd changes, and though Webber still wasn’t a fan of him, it was a little concerning to see  _ him _ of all people so worried.

 

They’d talked to him a few times since Wilson got back, though none were very lighthearted or friendly. It was hard to be nice to someone who nearly got someone you viewed as a dad killed. Still, they weren’t as angry now, at the very least the death threats had ceased. As long as he didn’t do anything stupid, he was in the clear. Ish.

 

They didn’t even  _ have _ to talk to him to see how nervous he was, though. They didn’t know him that well, and he was  _ trying _ to hide it, but his worry was obvious and constant. Every time they saw or mentioned something new to him, he’d swiftly respond with “I didn’t make that one, really!” or some variation thereof. The odd thing was, Webber believed him one hundred percent. After all, Maxwell didn’t hold the power anymore, nor did Wilson.

 

It wasn’t until one night that Webber actually thought to ask him.

 

It was late at dusk, the two were out collecting grass and twigs. A simple task that wouldn’t stress either of them out, but it would give them a bit of time to maybe get over their disdain toward him. They noticed a bit too late that the sky was rapidly darkening. “Oh, that’s not good,” they mumbled, quickly getting to work putting together a torch. It was hard to work in the dark, but not like they hadn’t done it before. They got a bit more concerned when they felt a familiar presence, but they refused to let it distract them, hands practically moving on their own as they put the torch together. Maxwell, however, had no such concentration.

 

“Charlie? It’s me, Maxwell!” He called. Webber nearly faltered, but with a quick pang of a headache, they finished the torch, lifting it up and chasing the shadow monster back before it could attack.

 

“...Charlie?” Webber questioned, looking at the taller man. They shook their head, starting to lead the way back to camp. They doubted the torch would last long enough to get through the night, after all, and they could barely see the campfire in the distance. Maxwell cleared his throat, looking rather awkward now.

 

“Well, yes. She was… My assistant.” Webber turned their gaze back to him, eyes narrow.

 

“What did you  _ do _ to her?” They hissed, fur bristling up.

 

“Why, whatever do you mean? For all you know, she’s been like that forever.” Maxwell refused to meet their gaze, which only made their anger worse. Still, they tried to remain calm.

 

“ _ No _ , she wasn’t. You meant  _ human _ assistant for your  _ magic act _ .” They narrowed their eyes, pretty irate. “Don’t try to pull a fast one, con artist. You’re not doing yourself any favors. I’ll ask again;  _ what did you do to her _ .”

 

Maxwell sighed in annoyance, forced to stop with Webber due to their shared light source. Something in the back of their mind pointed out to them that he wouldn’t be able to run if Webber decided to fight him, but they pushed the thought away. “I didn’t do  _ anything _ .  _ They _ turned her into the night monster. I played no part in it other than getting her here, and that was an  _ accident _ .”

 

Webber huffed, going back to walking. “Well, whether you’re telling the truth or not, you should tread carefully. I think Charlie’s found herself a higher position here.” Maxwell scowled, not responding.

 

They’d tell the rest of the group when they got back.

  
  
  


Deep in the woods, old bones waited, ready to be brought back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> a bit of a shorter one, but don't worry! there'll be some extra [plot stuff soon!](https://archiveofourown.org/works/15045113/chapters/35111897)


	12. just as important

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things are only getting weirder and weirder in the Constant, but it's nothing the group can't handle.
> 
> Or rather, _most_ of the group.

“You're not angry with him?”

 

“Not quite, no,” Willow replied, walking on. “I'm not angry with him for bringing me here, everything else he's done has definitely invoked my  _ ire _ , including almost getting Wilson stuck on a throne forever,” the firestarter explained, digging up another berry bush. “I'm watching to make sure he doesn't step out of line, but I think everyone is at this point. But I mean, he didn't  _ trick _ me, per se. Not how he did to everyone else I've heard from.” Webber nodded silently, prying a clump of grass from the ground, careful with the roots. “He did exactly what he promised, not really his fault I didn't read the fine print, and I don't mind being here too much anyways.”

 

“Isn't purposefully keeping information technically lying?” Webber pointed out, looking over at the small carpeted spot the group had found days ago. A bipedal, mechanical, horse-like creature stared at them silently, unmoving other than its “breathing”. They kept their eyes locked on it for so long that Willow had to nudge them forward to get their attention off of it. 

 

“C'mon, kiddo, don't pi-- make it mad,” she corrected herself mid-sentence, which made Webber wonder a little bit, but not too much. “Anyways, I guess that's true, but y’know. Genie rules.” She shrugged. Webber snorted softly, smile on their face.

 

“Yeah, maybe, but he's not a genie,” they replied, smiling. They still hadn't told anyone why they'd come here, other than Wendy. For Willow, however, they had a few guesses, and none of them were good. Still, they didn't really care. Actual literal arsonist or not, she didn't burn anything they or the others didn't want her to. The only times they ever got worried were when her sanity was clearly low, but even then, she usually let it go with an “ugh, fine” or a passive aggressive “whatever”. Wilson always mentioned a “last time” whenever she got that close to lighting something just to stay sane. It made them wonder a bit if she always had this amount of self control. Probably not.

 

“Nah, a genie would be smarter,” Willow snorted, digging up another twig. “I think we have enough to go back now.” Webber nodded, following her back toward camp, though they kept their gaze on the clockwork creatures as they passed. Odd things.

 

* * *

 

 

“Da dada da dada, dadadada da....”

 

Verbal ticks in Webber weren't uncommon, nor was the quiet singsong voice they typically had when making them. On many levels, they were an absolute chatterbox. They were almost constantly making noise, humming or quietly repeating words or sounds in rhythm, even quietly singing when they were on their own. Nobody really minded it, it helped them focus and it didn't really bother anyone else. They kept quiet when the situation called for it, it did no harm, and it was a good test to see if they were feeling okay. They'd rather talk most of the time, but when they couldn't, they just chattered.

 

They also tended to space out a lot, which couldn't really be helped, but still wasn't the best thing. Multiple times they'd come back scraped up or hurt because they lost focus in a dangerous area. Despite this, nobody really babied them over it, they always got themselves out of situations and usually had something to show for it.

 

“...Oh. Why am I here?” They mumbled, looking up at the fossils they'd put together. Had they really walked all the way out here without realizing? Why? They stared at the bones, then backed off, changing direction. They didn't quite appreciate the gap in their memory from coming out here. They barely recalled leaving camp. What excuse had they even used?

 

...The feeling of being watched was very prominent out here. They didn't really like it. They'd just go back home.

 

* * *

 

 

“Webber. Hey.  _ Webber _ .” Webber snapped out of the sort of trance they'd been in, looking up at Wendy.

 

“Oh, sorry, yeah?” Wendy looked at them quietly for a moment, studying their expression carefully. Measuring their emotions. 

 

“Are you okay?” She questioned, worry in her voice. “You've been zoning out a lot recently. Not to mention you vanishing without a trace so often like you've been doing. You're not hiding anything from me, are you?”

 

“What? No.” They paused, head tilted. “What do you mean  _ vanishing _ ?” Wendy turned her full attention to them at that, looking even more worried than before. 

 

“If you actually don't remember sneaking off every few days, it might be cause for concern.” Webber frowned, crossing their arms over their chest.

 

“Well, maybe it's--”  _ I'm as clueless as you are, don't pin it on me  _ “--nevermind. I don't know, but I really don't remember leaving that often. Not without telling anyone.” Wendy sighed, looking down at the garland she was putting together.

 

“If you say so.” It was said in that tone of voice that told Webber she was going to follow them out if they snuck out again. Understandable.

 

Their head hurt.

  
  
  


“What can I get for this thing?” Webber asked, holding up a little toy robot. The pig king snorted, tossing out a few chunks of gold in exchange.

 

Webber used to be terrified of pig villages, knowing the dangers of being around the pigmen, but now the survivors and the pigs had a bit of an understanding. Webber was allowed to stay as long as they didn't attack anyone, and if that deal was broken, their group would rain down hell’s fury. Still, Webber chose to only come around when they needed to trade trinkets, not really appreciating all the dirty looks they got. “How about this?” They asked, raising up a chess piece. The horsey one. The king contemplated it for a few moments, then tossed them a piece of paper.

 

The spider blinked, looking at it curiously. A sketch of some sort of sculpture. They blinked again, two-four-six-eight, and pocketed it. They continued their trade, getting back more gold and two more sketches. “Thank you, Mr. Pig!” They chirped, running off back towards camp. They blinked twice, head a bit foggy.

 

_ Make them before the next new moon. One of each. _

 

Another blink, and they looked around. That wasn't the spider, but it wasn't anything solid. They frowned uneasily, then kept walking.

 

_ One of each _ .

 

* * *

 

 

Webber and Wendy were working on another small grove, this one made up of those odd twiggy trees Webber had discovered. It was mostly in the hopes that they would keep producing twigs through the winter, unlike the saplings they usually used. After all, it was getting dangerously close to that time of year, they had to prepare the best that they could. They planted another seed in the ground, spidery limbs twitching.

 

“I think that's all of them. One, two, three, four…” Webber started counting on their fingers, blinking.

 

“Twenty-five,” Wendy interrupted, dusting her hands off. Webber blinked at her, head tilted.

 

“How'd you count that fast?”

 

“I didn't. It's a five by five grove, so there's twenty-five trees.” They paused at Webber's confused look, absolutely at a loss. “...What grade are you in?”

 

“Oh, uh…” They paused, frowning. They contemplated lying, but decided against. She'd know if they weren't being honest. “I dunno, actually. I think I was in first grade for a while, but I've mostly been homeschooled.”

 

“Ah, that would explain it.” Wendy nodded softly, stretching. “Don't worry about it. Why were you homeschooled, though?” Webber paused again, blinking slowly.

 

“Well… I didn't really get along with my classmates.” Really, they wished sometimes that they hadn't agreed to be homeschooled, they'd rather be bullied and be a problem child than be bored, but whatever. The past was past, nothing to be done about it now. “I was a weirdo problem child, so nobody really wanted to be friends with me. It's fine, though, I'm over it.”

 

Wendy frowned, nodding. “Well,” she started, “for what it's worth, I think you're pretty cool.” Webber smiled, nodding.

 

“It's worth a lot.” They paused, blinking. “...Also I might've maybe punched one of them a bit.”

 

“...Honestly, I'm proud.” Wendy let out a snort, leading the way back towards camp. “I wasn't very popular in school either. I just kept my head down most of the time. There were rumors, of course, but I just didn't really care.” Webber nodded, keeping pace with her. She really was their best friend. The one they could trust with nearly anything. Not to mention she was at least seventy percent of their impulse control. They didn't know what they'd do without her.

 

They'd keep her safe and sound, no matter what happened.

 

“...telling you, we need a prestihatitator.” They heard Maxwell first, which quickly made Wendy u-turn to avoid him. They followed her, not wanting to leave her alone, but they did spy Maxwell and Wilson arguing over whatever a prestihatitator was. Oh well. They'd just stay with their friend for now.

 

Somewhere in the woods, pieced together bones pulsated with a mysterious power.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi guys!
> 
> i'm really sorry for how late this chapter is! i'm getting a small bit of writers block, but don't worry, i won't let this fic die!
> 
> to sort of make up for it, i did do some art! [you can check it out here](https://stxticspxcelover.tumblr.com/tagged/spiderfriend)
> 
> i'm also still taking questions on my ic sideblog! it's linked in the beginning & end notes of the fic
> 
> i love you guys! i hope you're enjoying the story <3


	13. alas, brave warrior

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Webber's life is only growing more and more confusing. It was only a matter of time until they cracked under the pressure.

“I mean, there's really not a whole lot you can use here that you learned in school.”

Webber's clawed hands were extremely careful, they were trying to be as gentle and precise as they could. They scored into the side of the rock, it felt much more malleable while it was on the pottery table. Enough so that, with a little water, they could work it in their hands like wet clay. Wendy was nearby, half due to Webber's need for company and half because Wendy just liked spending time with them. Best friends forever was not a label to take for granted.

“Like, if you can count, add, and maybe multiply, plus reading and writing? You'll be fine. There’s no class about survival in an alternate dimension with huge bear badgers and one-eyed bipedal deer,” Wendy continued, working on making another garland. Any item that would keep Webber's sanity problems from flaring up was a good investment to make, according to Wendy. “Doesn't teach you to fight, either. You don't really need a whole lot of school skills here, it's just about survival.”

“I mean, I was kinda taught how to fight by elementary school,” Webber replied idly, sculpting the material in front of them into vaguely familiar shapes. They didn't really have to focus on this. It was just a faint white noise in their head that handled it, hands practically moving on their own.

“Yeah? How's that?”

Webber paused, then snorted softly. “Well, you know how I told you I was homeschooled?” Wendy nodded, curious look on her face. “About that. I kinda got picked on a lot at school, so I figured out how to fend for myself pretty fast. I mean, my parents didn't just take me out of the system.” They were almost done with the statue. “I may or may not have gotten expelled for biting someone. Like, really hard.”

Wendy paused, worry in her expression, and then she had a look of mild realization and calmed back down. “I honestly forgot you weren't always a spider,” she commented, snorting. “But considering how cheerful and forgiving you are, if you tried to hurt someone chances are they deserved it.”

Webber blinked two-four-six-eight, putting the finishing touches on their sculpture. Wendy tilted her head at it curiously, eyebrow raised. “A knight?”

“Huh? It's a horse.”

“No, like the chess piece. It'd make sense with the other two you made,” she said with a shrug, though they could tell she was now keeping a very close eye on them. After all, it was a bit suspicious that they didn't know what it was that they were making for the past hour, not to mention that they did the same thing for the other two chess pieces they'd made.

“Oh, I guess so.” They blinked, looking at the rapidly drying statue. Wendy gave them a look.

“You're acting off again,” she commented, crossing her arms. “What's up? You're not hiding stuff from me, are you? You know I won't tell anyone.” The legs on Webber's head twitched slightly, raising a tiny bit and then lowering back down.

“No, everything's fine,” they replied, speed walking off with their statue to put it with the others. Wendy, luckily, didn't make chase. They had three now, placed in a triangle near base. All done, that was what they needed. Why? They weren't sure, but the new moon was soon, it had to be ready. Webber blinked as a garland was tossed onto their head, turning to look at a very irritated looking Wendy.

“You're not a good liar,” the girl said simply, crossing her arms. “If you don't want to talk about it, it's fine. Just say so instead of trying to pull the wool over my eyes.”

Webber’s spider limbs twitched, feeling a pang of guilt. “Sorry,” they mumbled, letting out a quiet chittering sound. “I'll keep that in mind.” Wendy only nodded, looking around.

Camp had grown slightly, they now had extra crock pots and drying racks, along with things like chests, ice boxes, tents, and so on. It was a good amount of improvement. They even had new machines, though Webber couldn't make heads or tails of them. Maxwell might've been terrible at actually living, but he was pretty much a living encyclopedia on most things in the Constant. Most. Things were still changing, with Charlie in charge.

Their blackouts had lessened, too. The gaps in their memory were much shorter, and that made Wendy significantly less worried. They still got the occasional strange urge or thought, but much less than before. Hopefully it was a good sign.

They'd just have to wait and see.

* * *

 

It was the new moon tonight. Wendy was on watch duty, allowing them to rest easy.

They were trying to get to sleep in their tent, tossing and turning uncomfortably. They felt like they were being watched. Slowly, they cracked their eyes open, and then they widened, caught off guard by what looked like a pair of eyes staring at them in the dark. The spider hybrid shuddered, limbs raising in silent threat. Then, as they watched, the darkness lit up with eyes, all staring at them. They opened their mouth to let out a warning cry, to wake everyone else.

Then they woke up, Wendy's hand on their shoulder. The girl looked at them worriedly, head tilted. “Get up. There's something wrong.” With that simple explanation, she left the tent. Webber shook their head, quickly getting up and heading outside.

It was apparent why she was worried, there was a quiet rattling sound. They followed the noise, finding that it lead to the statues they'd made. Webber blinked, touching the top of the knight statue and tilting their head. It was almost freezing to the touch. The spider hybrid paused, eyes narrowing. _What are you--_

Too late. Webber's claws slashed through the stone, cracking it. There was a long silence, then a cry of alarm from Wendy, who'd apparently come back outside with everyone else. The statue cracked, stone flaking off, and then shattered. A shadow creature emerged, a bipedal creature with a hunched back. It glared at them. Just like that, the other two statues shattered on their own, unveiling two more shadow creatures. One was one-eyed and looked like it had a cape or cloak, the other was a large lump with ears and a horn.

Webber backed up, spider limbs twitching uneasily. The rook vanished, and they saw its jaws reform inches from their face.

Snap. 

* * *

 

When Webber became aware again, it was morning.

They landed the final hit on the shadow rook, defeating it. Nobody had died, they noticed, but everyone was injured. A bad time for something so disastrous to happen, considering it would be winter soon.

Webber blinked down at the items the rook had dropped. They were familiar with nightmare fuel, which felt like freezing liquid smoke, and it had also dropped some armor. That wasn't what they were interested in.

On the ground was a black, sickly looking heart. Webber picked it up, turning it over in their hand. Even holding it made them vaguely ill with dread, so they instead shoved it into their bag. They picked up the other items, then went to join the rest of the group. Seeing everyone so injured because of them sent a harsh pang of guilt through them, but they did their best to shake it off.

They felt like they had what they needed now.

* * *

 

 

Webber had looked desperately for a window to slip off, but hadn't found one for a few days. They had to help get healing items, plus everything else to prepare for winter. Still, they found their chance.

They escaped into the forest, finding the creature they'd rebuilt. They took the heart out of their bag, reaching up to place it where they thought it should go, but their arm was forcibly stopped. _You're going to get yourself killed,_ the spidery half of them hissed. _I was hardly able to keep you alive on the new moon._ Webber huffed, trying to move their arm, to no avail. “Let go,” they hissed, struggling against the other half of themself.

_I'm not letting you do this. Haven't you caused enough trouble lately?_ “I'm not causing trouble!” _Everyone is hurt, and why? Because you thought it would be a good idea._ “Nobody died, everyone is okay now!” _Did you even see how worried they are about you? Did you even look at them?_ “I'm _fine_ ,” they snapped, growling. Their spider half grew silent, letting go. Webber huffed, pressing the heart into its slot. After a moment, it fused with the fossils, dark magic binding the bones together. Its eyes lit up a sickly green, plants forming over the bones. The massive creature stood, staring at them.

They felt growing dread, would it attack them? All was silent for a few moments, and then it started to walk, flowers and other plants growing in its wake. Webber paused, then followed it. It was slow, clumsy. After a few steps, one arm fell off of it, nearly hitting them. Silently, it lifted its arm back up, reattaching it to the socket.

“Are you alright?” Webber questioned. It didn't answer, just continued walking. They felt like they were being watched, quickly glancing around before spotting Wendy not too far off, staring at them with quite a bit of worry on her face. As soon as she was noticed, she walked over, eyes narrow.

“We _need_ to tell the others about this,” she said simply, gesturing to the huge thing.

“What? Why?” They whined, spider limbs lowering. Wendy pinched the bridge of her nose.

“This isn't just playing archaeology anymore, Webber. This is getting dangerous. We had enough of a close call on the new moon, we don't need this becoming hostile too.” Webber felt anger bubble up, was she really going to tell? The creature dropped its arm again.

“You swore,” they hissed, fur fluffing up. “You _promised_ you wouldn't tell.”

“That was when it was harmless, Webber. Remember the bearger? What if this is worse?”

“It's not!” They insisted.

“You don't know--”

Suddenly, the creature broke apart, bones falling to the ground along with the heart and a few pieces of nightmare fuel. Webber lunged for the heart, but Wendy got to it first, shoving it in her bag. Webber hissed, fur bristling, and Wendy backed up a step.

_You're scaring her,_ the spider warned, still sounding rather irritated with them. Webber paused, taking a moment to close their mouth and lower their limbs. “Please don't tell. You promised,” they whined again.

Wendy shook her head, eyes narrow. “Webber, this is making you so… Reactive. Would you have attacked me just now, if I were closer?” Webber went silent, staring at the ground. They wouldn't. Would they? They weren't sure of themself anymore. Would they attack Wendy? Their silence was the only answer Wendy needed. “...I'm going to tell the group. They need to know, or someone could get hurt.”

Webber bristled again, silently scooping up their fossils and putting them into their bag. “...Fine. Traitor.” Wendy gave them a hurt look in response, then turned tail, heading back towards camp. _You promised. You lied._

* * *

 

Everyone was quick to notice that there was something up with Webber and Wendy. Before, they'd spend nearly every day with each other for at least a few hours. Now? Now they were pretty clearly avoiding each other like the plague. It was very apparent that something had gone down.

“Did you and Wendy have a fight, kiddo?” Willow asked worriedly, burying a pinecone in the ground. It instantly sprouted into a sapling. Webber made no reply, bristling slightly. Willow took that as a yes. “I'm sure you'll make up soon. You two are practically inseparable most of the time.”

_That was before she decided to tattle on me,_ Webber thought bitterly. Their spider half didn't respond, if he was listening. That was fine. They didn't need him anyway. Abigail had been avoiding them, too.

They suddenly felt a whole lot lonelier.

Wendy hadn't told yet, they didn't think. Nobody had confronted them about it, at least. They still had some time to do… Something. Fix things before anyone found out. Find out what that creature was. They'd worked out that it'd been heading to the caves, at least, so they thought, so they'd rebuild it there. This wouldn't stop them.

* * *

 

Night had fallen now, and they were on fire watch. They sat by the fire for a few hours, until they were sure everyone was asleep. Then it was time to put their plan into action.

First they stopped by the chests and iceboxes, taking some food and equipment, just in case. Then, the more risky part. They slipped into the tent they and Wendy shared, carefully digging through her bag and pulling out what they needed. The heart. They checked to make sure she was still sleeping, then crept out.

They tossed a generous number of logs into the fire, just to be safe. It wouldn't go out in the night. They paused, glancing at the camp again, then lit a torch. They wouldn't be gone forever. They'd be back before tomorrow afternoon, surely. Just before they left, they caught sight of Abigail on the edge of camp, who fixed them with a confused stare. They took a step back, out of the camp, and Abigail vanished into Wendy's tent.

Not good. She'd stop them.

They quickly walked away, not wanting to risk their torch getting blown out by running. Still, that was tossed to the wind as they heard Wendy call their name. Everyone would be awake now, they had to hurry. Thankfully, she still needed to make a torch before she could catch up, it'd buy them time. They hurried toward where they knew the cave entrance would be, quick to start climbing down the rope they'd tied there. They heard fast-approaching steps above them, and Wendy’s light up above.

“Webber, what are you doing?” She asked quickly, a healthy amount of worry in her voice.

“Go back to camp!” They called back, still climbing down. There was a huff, then Wendy started to climb down after them.

“Not without you,” she replied simply, obviously a bit irritated. “And that didn't answer my question!”

Webber hissed in irritation, dropping off the last foot or two and heading into the depths. They could swear they felt a vibration in the ground, but it wouldn't stop them, whatever it was. They heard Wendy hit the ground behind them and hurried on, though no doubt she'd be able to follow their torch light.

“Webber! Wendy!” They heard Willow’s worried voice call out. “Get out of there!” Webber chose to ignore it, focused on losing Wendy. They thought they heard Wilson’s yell too.

To their surprise, Wendy had stopped, gaze fixed on the floor. Webber paused, puzzled, then realized what she was looking at. Pebbles on the ground were shaking, as was the whole ground.

Webber looked up and met her gaze, eyes wide as a deep rumbling began. Wendy yelled something, but it was lost under the awful sound. A rock fell from the roof nearby. Webber backed up a step, then another, then started running.

Wendy could only watch as the roof above them caved in, piles of rock either trapping the spider hybrid or worse. The rockfall had stopped, and she was safe, but at what cost? She gripped her torch tighter. 

“...Webber?” She called, but just as she dreaded, her friend didn't reply.

Webber was gone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> chapter 13 is finally done! i hope it was worth the wait
> 
> i'm hoping to get back to a fairly regular upload schedule now, so hopefully this won't be a cliffhanger for too long! we're now on a (temporary) wendy pov so we'll see how that goes
> 
> this is pretty much the end of arc 1! originally i was going to post it on friday the 13th months back, but stuff happens, so it was delayed for a good while. i decided to post tonight because it's going to be a new moon, and i thought that was just as fitting
> 
> i'm also hoping to make a halloween fic! we'll see if that happens whenever the halloween event starts
> 
> as always, love you guys! i hope you enjoyed <3


	14. quick announcement

just a quick announcement-- the wendy takeover is now active on the [ic webber blog](https://creepiestcrawlie.tumblr.com/)! feel free to send her some asks

 

the next chapter will be in the works soon! (i'll delete this one once it's ready)

**Author's Note:**

> the author has a main tumblr account where questions abt this fic are allowed and encouraged! check it out at kittenixie.tumblr.com
> 
> they also have a side blog where you can interact directly with this canon's webber, but please read the rules first! the side blog is at creepiestcrawlie.tumblr.com


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